Murphy's Law
by Bloom Purple Rose
Summary: If anything can go wrong, most likely...it will. That's what Murphy's Law means anyways. So I never really believed in bad luck until a few years ago when my steady life turned into a hurricane of chaos and destruction. M for future chaps. Jensen/OFC
1. Preface

**Murphy's Law**

_~Preface~_

If anything can go wrong, most likely it will. That's what Murphy's Law means anyways. I never really believed in bad luck until a few years ago when my steady life turned into a hurricane of chaos and destruction. Most of it I believe is my own fault; trusted people I shouldn't of, stuck my nose in business that wasn't mine, and did things that were bad...really bad.

In my family of upstanding Army men and women I was always the 'prodigious' child; the one my parents cooed over and the one that never wanted the spotlight. I could play the cello and violin, got straight As, and was always my teacher's favorite. I never, ever got into trouble unlike my brother, who's second home was either the Principal's office or the police station. He never technically got 'arrested', but I think my father had something to do with that.

You see, my father had been a General in the United States Army and so had my grandfather and his grandfather and so on. My mother had been a nurse so there was a long line of Vets. It was only natural for my brother and me to follow suit. It was in our blood.

I was sixteen when my parents passed away. I quickly graduated high school early and went straight into a special branch of the military that was unknown to the general population. Because of my parents I met people that have become my greatest allies in life. One of them in particular is a man named Lieutenant Colonel Franklin Clay. He was more like a brother to me then my actual brother was, who acted more like a best friend.

My older brother and I had worked several 'assignments' with Clay, since apparently our father had known we would go this route in our lives. There was no one else my parents trusted more with their children's lives then Clay.

After a while I broke away from them, wanting to _find my own way_;or so that's what I thought. I went off and joined new teams, but mostly stuck with singular person missions and mostly rescue missions. Unlike others I preferred to save lives rather then end them. I only shot if there was just cause and only when there was no other alternative.

I learned a year later, after I had broken away from Clay, that my brother had disappeared one day from a mission. Gone into a warehouse and never came out. Another year passed and I found him floating under the radar, working for someone as an intelligence informant since he didn't want to put his newly born daughter into harms way. The daughter I had never known existed until I confronted him.

She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen and I had seen some pretty beautiful things in my life. She looked just like my brother, like me; light golden hair, deep blue almost indigo eyes, and light peach skin with freckles here and there. I loved her the instant I met her and I forgave my brother the moment she smiled at me.

I visited them when I could and stayed a lone wolf in my assignments, moving on to do a few child rescue missions on the side. Sorta like freelance work you could say. I had always had a soft spot for children and meeting my niece had turned me into a complete cotton ball.

Two years passed and when I was twenty the man my brother worked for sent out a kill on him, his wife, and his daughter. This man hunted them down and killed them, all of them, in cold blood. My brother; dead. My sister in-law; dead. My little five year old niece...dead.

My name is Rhoswen Cayleigh Moriarty and I'm alone now. I'm twenty-two years old and it's been two years since my family was murdered. I haven't given up on finding the son of a bitch who had done it. I never will. It's the only connection to the world where the murderer still lives. It's my only way of finding him and I will find him.


	2. Reunion

Murphy's Law

"A little while longer." I whisper to myself and scan the small village below with the binoculars I held in front of my eyes. I see the same guards in front of the large house belonging to the captor of my target or _targets_; Mr. Al-Fadhil. I watch as the guards walk around a little, bored with their station like I was from where I sat on the large hill nearly fifty yards away.

"Just a little bit longer." I lower my binoculars and look up at the sky, seeing the small puffs of white floating in the light blue canvas. A flash of gold floats over my face and I push the hair that had fallen from the hair-band back behind my ear. I close my eyes and feel the sun beat down on me as though I was in a frying pan. I hated the heat, but I would grin and bare it anyways.

This was not the place I would have chosen for a job; Bolivia. It was just too hot this time of year to be running around with guns, knives, and heavy boots through the thick jungle. I look back at the jeep I had driven to my location and then shake my head, picking up my binoculars again.

_"Rose, do you hear me?"_

"This is Rose. I hear you." I answer as I scan the village below again, seeing more guards walking around with Uzis in their hands.

_"Stand by for your orders."_

"Standing by." I return and wait for what I was to be told.

_"...is this Rhos Moriarty?"_

I lower the binoculars at the sound of the strange voice now ringing in my ear. This wasn't my commanding officer. I narrow my eyes a little and touch the ear bud in my ear gently.

"Identify yourself." I speak up and place the binoculars into the pack by my feet. The voice gives a low laugh and then sighs.

_"Oh, a woman...and here I was under the impression Rhos was a man. What a pleasant surprise this is."_

"Is there a problem?" I ask carefully, wondering if he would pull me out with the realization that I was female. It didn't usually matter, but there were those 'specific' cases where it seemed to. Sexist bastards...

_"No, no problem. I thinks it's sexy; a woman flailing guns around and causing chaos. It's pretty hot, Rhos."_

"It's Rhoswen and you never answered me." I ignore his comments and then take a deep breath, "Identify yourself or get off my God damn line."

_"I'm your boss here sweetheart. So show a little respect and settle down."_

"You're the guy who hired me, huh? This **Max** character?" I ask and throw my pack onto my back, clasping it around my waist for security reasons. I move to my jeep and open the back hatch, reaching for my handguns in the closed case.

_"It's almost show time. You remember the plan? Or do I have to repeat it for your sensitive female ears?"_

"I got it." I give a small laugh, shutting the hatch and then click my tongue as a thought pops into my head, "I don't see any children yet. Are you positive they're here?"

_"Very positive. They're there or going to be there. Either way children will be on the property as captives."_

"Alright." I reply and place my handguns into the holster strapped around my chest. The handguns dangle beneath my arms and under the vest I wore.

_"Oh, docile are we? Like being ordered around? I like that in my mercenaries. Makes it easier to get things done. Talk to you later sweetheart."_

I bite my tongue from saying anything about the nickname and then walk west into the jungle. This was the first time actually talking with this guy and I already didn't like him. Usually I just got an envelope filled with every piece of information that I needed. Easy, but this guy made it so difficult.

I continued walking, my head in other places and don't notice the clearing ahead of me until a voice speaks up.

"Should I give the order?" I slow my pace and begin to stalk, not wanting to cause trouble before I could do my job. I take another slow step closer, crouching and pulling out a gun from my holster.

"Hold off another minute, Jensen." I stop short of flicking off the safety and feel taken aback by the newest voice. It was deep, a little rough; I knew it. Of course I knew it.

I walk a little faster, holstering my gun again, and slowly see a group of people appearing by a Humvee in the clearing.

"We want to be sure."

"Clay?" I ask gently as I step out into the clearing. Immediately I'm faced with guns pointed at me by each of the other squad members. I look at each of the men to my left, studying them carefully. A man with a scar stretching across his right eye. Another with a shaved head and wedding ring on the chain with his dog-tags.

Then I look diagonal from me at the man by a rifle, obviously their sniper, wearing a black cowboy hat. My eyes move right at the Humvee where a dirty blonde with glasses sat in the back of the vehicle, staring at me dumbfounded as though he had been caught sneaking into the cookie jar before supper.

My eyes move and land on a man with cropped brown hair, standing near six foot two with slightly narrowed eyes. Slowly my eyes lighten and a smile flutters onto my lips.

"It is you." I take a step towards him when a knife is pressed firmly to my throat. I halt and my smile drops, my hands clenched tightly into fists. I was more then ready to defend myself if that was the case, but I knew Clay would never allow me to be hurt. Not by one of his men; no way.

"Call off your dog or he's going to get hurt." I stare at Clay with a steady eye while I leveled the situation I was in. Rather large knife pressed to my throat, arms wrapped tightly around my waist, backpack pressed firmly against my assailants chest. I mapped out every move I would make if Clay didn't call the man off soon.

"Name." Clay demands, arms crossing over his vested chest. I narrow my eyes at him and tilt my head slightly. He didn't remember me? Had it really been that long?

"Moriarty." I answer and his expression lightens, "You knew my father and my brother and you used to know me, but obviously with age your memory's going, old man."

Clay gives a hearty laugh and runs a hand over his mouth, trying to hold back his grin. He nods his head at the man behind me holding the knife to my throat.

"Alright Roque, let her go. She's not a threat. At least not to me." Clay laughs and gives a small wave to Roque, letting his arms fall from his chest. The knife lingers on my throat a moment longer and then disappears, gliding gently across my skin in a warning. I look behind me at the man with the scar, taking a mental note of his name.

"See you've made some new friends." My gaze returns to Clay after I had looked around at the others staring at me.

"Yeah well, kinda tough to keep the old ones when they keep disappearing on me." Clay retorts with a small snort. I do nothing, only look towards the ground and mumble 'yeah' in response. I felt guilty for leaving him and my brother so suddenly, but it was the past and it was unimportant at the moment.

I look up from the ground and notice the change in Clay's expression.

"What're you doing here, Rhos?" Clay asks as his eyes narrow slightly. They weren't narrowed at me, but more at him trying to figure out what I was doing in the same place as him. Usually if we were in the same place on different teams that meant serious trouble. Saving versus killing just don't really mix well.

"Yeah, what are you doing here and who the hell are you and how do you know Clay?" My eyes travel behind Clay to the man sitting in the back of the Humvee. The first thing my eyes see again on him is his glasses. They're shaded over, a kind of purple tinge to then. Then I notice his eyes behind the shaded glass; sky blue with a little gray.

"I could ask you the very same thing." I counter and unbuckle the strap across my stomach from my back pack.

"Yeah, well I asked you first." The dirty blonde sat up straighter, a walkie in his left hand and a button in his right.

"Shut up Jensen." Clay scolds him and then looks back at me.

"Do you all go by last names or something?" I ask and look around the group, only knowing two names so far, well three if you count Clay.

"Not all of us." The man with the wedding ring speaks up.

"So...what are your names then?" I try to encourage, not wanting to answer Clay's question.

"I asked first!" Jensen calls out and I look back at him. I narrow my eyes a little at him and then shake my head.

"Yeah, but it's five against one. You first then I'll go." I reply, finding the compromise fair. In my own mind.

"That's Pooch; our transport and heavy weaponry," Clay begins and nods towards the man standing off to the other side of the clearing.

"Whoa wait. You can't just give in." Jensen argues, staring down at Clay, "I had her right where I wanted her!"

"Who the hell's in charge? And no you didn't have her; at all." Clay retorts with and then looks to the man with the rifle off towards the edge of the hill, "That's Cougar; our long range eliminations. The one who had the knife at your throat is Roque; demo and tactical. And Jensen, the loud mouth, is our communications and tech specialist."

I nod my head and look back at Clay, seeing Jensen staring at me from behind his glasses. I stare back at him and then he lowers his head a little to look at me from over the top of his glasses. I give a small laugh and smile, nodding my head.

"Alright, fine four eyes." I announce and drop my pack from my back, "My name's Rhoswen Moriarty. I'm here because I was hired to be and I've known Clay since I was ten because my father was his General in the Army."


	3. Change of Plans

Murphy's Law

"Be kind, rewind. Your father was Clay's General? For real?" Jensen gives a small laugh, continuing to talk though I was unable to keep up with his ramblings. I stare at him a moment longer and open my mouth to try and reply to his questions, but shake my head and look to Clay.

"Is he ADHD?" I ask, listening to Jensen continue on. Clay shrugs with a smile.

"Shut up Jensen!" Pooch yells, though Jensen seems to either ignore him or just doesn't hear him. Jensen continues to ramble and I see Clay become aggravated. Obviously the entire team had a problem with Jensen's motor mouth.

"Jensen shut the hell up!" Clay snaps and then looks back at me, "Who hired you?"

"Some guy named Max, who thinks it's real _hot _to have a woman doing his dirty work, might I add." I reply and then roll my eyes, mumbling about Max being a creep, "I'm supposed to watch an Al-Fadhil. Know him?"

"That's who we're here for too." I look over at Pooch and knit my eyebrows together.

"You're here to kill him?" I ask, looking back to Clay.

"You have to ask?" Clay returns with, a small smirk making its way to his lips.

"Two contracts; serving two different purposes with a similar mark?" I ask softly and then bite on my bottom lip.

"You're supposed to save him?" Clay asks, his own eyes narrowing in suspicion. I shake my head as I try to work out my thoughts. Why would someone send me to save the children if they were already having their captor taken out? It didn't make sense.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Jensen's outburst catches each of our attention, forcing us to look at him. He gives a holler of a laugh as he stares down at a small screen in his lap, "I've locked on the house."

"Alright, call it in." Clay tells him and looks over at me, "Might as well do this together, Rhos. Especially if we're not contradicting each other here."

"Yeah alright." I agree, seeing no reason not to work with them. I walk closer to the side of the hill by where the sniper was crouching. I pull out my binoculars from my pack and then toss it onto my back, looking down at the village below.

Something just didn't feel right. First off, I had yet to see _any _children on the premises. Secondly, Clay was here to take out Al-Fadhil. And thirdly, well thirdly was this mysterious Max character that refused to show his face.

"Aerial, coordinates are locked and being sent to you now." Jensen speaks into the walkie as I scan across the ground. I watch several guards walking through the small village and up to the house, little people trailing behind them, guards picking up the back in case of escape.

I quickly do a double take and then pull the binoculars from my eyes, not sure if I was really seeing what I thought I was. I look back at the long line of persons and then tear my eyes from the binoculars again.

"Do you see that?" I ask and then look down at the sniper beside me, pointing in the direction I had been looking in. Cougar looks through his scope again and then lifts his head quickly.

"Si." He replies and then looks over at Clay, "Hay niños ahí abajo!"

"Call off the aerial strike Jensen!" I yell and drop my binoculars to the ground. I run over to the Humvee, "There's children down there! Call off the attack!"

"Are you sure they're children?" Jensen asks and I growl, ripping the walkie from his hands.

"Red light, red light! Children have entered the premises. Cancel your last order!" I let go of the button and an unhealthy static returns my pleas. Jensen pulls the walkie from my hand and clicks the button to talk.

"Repeat. Red light. Children are below. Strike needs to hold." Jensen lets the button go and the static returns. He looks at me and then at Clay, shaking his head, "Some thing's interfering with the signal."

_"How very smart you are."_

I look at Clay, my eyes narrowing at his silence.

"Who is this?" Clay asks, touching the ear piece in his ear.

'Who is it?' I mouth to him, unaware of what was going on. Clay shakes his head and looks off to the ground as he listens.

_"Now now. Formalities are of no use in this situation."_

"Who is it?" I ask, looking up at Jensen.

"I don't know, but he's kinda creepy. Got that stalker voice mixed in with the egotistical edge." Jensen replies, shaking his head. I ignore Jensen's little comment and look back over at Clay.

"It's Max." I answer, looking over at him and then up at Jensen.

"So this is Max." Clay speaks up, staring at me.

_"Right you are again. This is Max. I bet our little Mother Hen told you that one. She's not supposed to be there, but that's her. Mind of her own and all. She's really something that girl. Strong, intelligent, pretty, and dangerous. Can't forget that one. She's-"_

"What's he saying?" I ask, feeling annoyed that I could hear none of the conversation. Clay looks over at me and points to me. I feel slightly taken aback as if I had been hit in the face with a pillow. Why would he talk about me?

I quickly pull on Jensen's arm and make him lean closer to me. I place my ear beside his, trying to listen to the conversation through his ear piece.

_"Too bad she's all alone. Real shame that girl has no one left."_

"Done confessing your feelings? We have to cancel the last order. There's children down in the village." Clay speaks up, nearly ordering it to Max. I look over at him and notice the strained look on his face. He didn't like children being involved as much as I did.

_"Oh I know that already."_

I look over at Clay as my eyes narrow. He already knew?

"How?" Clay asks and looks away from me.

_"They're there because of me. Did I forget to mention that when I hired all of you? Oops."_

I feel my mouth open slightly as my face falls and chest tightens. I get a cold chill over my arms as I take slow and deep breath to steady myself. I feel an array of emotions rushing through me, none of which would help if I were to let them take hold.

_"Too bad they all have to die. Rhos will be so tormented with letting them die like her family...but of course you already knew about that. Her brother dieing and all six months ago."_

Clay turns back to me and stares, chest moving up and down slowly. I look away from him, his stare burning me as if a conviction of what had happened.

"You have some kind of grudge against Rhos?" Clay asks slowly. I can feel his eyes lingering on me as I try to look anywhere but at him.

_"Not really. Her brother was always the pain in the ass. Never followed directions. Did what ever he wanted and his information was always too little too late. That's why I put the hit out on him and not her. She's different. She's better."_

My breath hitched in my throat as I stared at Clay. I feel dizzy and sick and my legs feel like they were going to give out. This was him; Max. He was my brother's murderer and I hadn't known. Not even a little. I let go of Jensen and back away.

"So why _are_ you here then?" Jensen asks as he looks over at me. I stare at him and open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out so I shake my head dumbly. I try to think out every possible answer to the question; why was I here?

"I wasn't supposed to find you." I finally speak up, a realization hitting me in between the eyes. I look over at Clay and shake my head, "I was supposed to be saving the children in the village right now while you sent the aerial strike; killing me and Al-Fadhil."

"Two birds; one very big explosive stone." Jensen gives a small nervous laugh and then quietly apologizes, mumbling some other things under his breath.

"No, you're right Jensen." I reply, looking over at him, "It is two birds; one stone."

"Why does he want to kill you though?" Jensen asks carefully.

"Because I've been looking for him for years. Because I want him dead and I wouldn't stop till he was." I shake my head and then look to Clay, who stares at me. He understood exactly what I did. I was never here to really save the children. I was here because Max was sick of me looking for him, hunting him down like he had hunted my brother down and killed him and my niece.

"Ask him." I growl out, my jaw becoming tight as my teeth clenched together.

"You don't want to hear it." Clay sighs and I knew he was right, but it didn't matter whether or not I wanted to hear it. I needed to.

"Ask him why." I clench my hands into tight fists, "Ask him! Why her! Why Laura!"

"Wait, I thought we were talking about your brother?" Pooch asks, looking from me to Clay.

"We were." I growl out and continue to stare at Clay.

"Who's Laura then?" Jensen asks, looking over at me.

"My dead niece." I spit the phrase out as if it were a curse, "Ask. Him. Why."

"...why did you kill Laura?" Clay asks slowly, almost begrudging me for having him ask at all. I watch him carefully, waiting for an answer.

_"Why little Laura?"_

"Yeah...why?" Clay speaks and I feel my body tense up more, preparing for what Max's answer would be. Clay slowly looks up at me and stares straight into my eyes.

"Why?" The words sound more like begging then asking as they leave my lips.

_"Because I could."_

"...because you could." Clay repeats Max's words and I feel myself go numb.

_"It's almost show time."_

"No, stop the strike." Clay says suddenly and I start to shake my head as I stare at him. I could guess where the conversation was going on between him and Max. Both arguing back and forth; Clay trying to stop the attack while the children sat like ducks in the house below the hill.

Max couldn't do this. They were just innocent children thrown into a situation by a mad man who wanted **me **dead, who had killed my five year old niece and my brother. I turn towards the tree tops behind me where the hill dipped and where the village sat nestled among the trees. I may be numb, but I was not going to let him get away. This was over.

"Rhos no." Clay orders suddenly, taking a slow step towards me as if I would be startled like a wild animal. I look back at him as his eyes harden, realizing exactly what I was thinking, "No."

I take a step backwards, shaking my head slowly at him. He knew me too well and that was one reason why I had left his squad years ago before my brother. It made it difficult to do what I believed I needed to. He had always stopped me and if I didn't act fast enough now he would stop me again.

"Rhoswen...don't even think about it." Clay says a little lower, "We'll do this together. We **will** get him back for everything he's done. I promise."

"What's going on? What's she thinkin' Clay? What's she gonna do?" Roque speaks up for the first time as Clay takes another slow step towards me, hands out to me and gently bobbing to tell me to calm down. Roque looks between us again, "What's going on!"

"Hold on a minute!" Clay shouts back at him and the others, his eyes never leaving me, "Rhos we will get them, but we **have to do it together**."

"Your not part of this Clay. This is personal. You and your team should go, but I'm gonna stay." I reply softly, taking another step back and turning towards the edge of the hill and the village, assessing the slope of the hill, "There's enough time left to save the children. Then I'm going to hunt him down like a dog after this. I swear to God I'll make him suffer."

"We'll do it together."

"Not enough time for _that _Clay." I give a grim smile, pushing the thoughts of my personal issues into the back of my mind. I needed to concentrate now on what was happening in this point in time, not the past.

"Rhoswen **no**!" Clay calls out as I spring forward and jump off the side of the hill, landing down in the brush and skidding on the slope of it towards the village. I couldn't let the children get hurt because of me. I just couldn't. I wouldn't.

I run down the rest of the hill, nearly tripping several times because my head was in other places. I could picture her as one of them; one of the captive children. Her little laugh, her little hands, her voice...

Everything had just become so meshed together. The past was the present, the future was my past, present was my future. I couldn't tell what was what anymore. Instinct had just taken over and was thrusting me into the impending danger at the end of the hill.

The one thing I _was_ sure of was that this time Max wouldn't get away with killing someone, especially a child. Not while I was here and more then willing to make a sacrifice to ensure their safety. If I lived through this I was going to find him and kill him like the dog he is.


	4. Strike

Murphy's Law

I skid to a stop and jump behind a tree, peeking around it at the trail where the children had been led into the house of Al-Fadhil. I reach passed the vest I wore and grip the handguns secured at my sides, right beneath my arms. I pull them out and flick off the safety of each with my thumbs, raising the barrels towards the sky.

I sidestep the tree and crouch slightly, running out from my cover. I run straight towards the building ahead of me and throw my back to a wall behind a group of crates. I start to stand up straight, but hit the ground again when I see guards coming my way.

(Hurry up!) "Apúrate!" The group of guards rush passed me, one after the other as I try to slink further into the dirt. I hear their knives and guns clinking at their sides with each step, slowly fading away, " Muévete! Muévete!" (Move! Move!)

I release the breath I was holding and close my eyes tightly, trying to slow my racing heart as the footsteps disappear. I stand up from the ground and look down the little alley I had found myself in. I move closer to the end of the alley and look left, spotting a section of thick landscaping before a small shed.

I make sure my way is clear, take a deep breath, and then run as fast as I can. I keep myself crouched as I run straight to the landscaping. I quickly hide behind a large palo santo tree and lie my back tightly against it.

_"Rhos? Hello? Can you hear me?" _A voice calls in my ear, making me jump slightly till I remember I have an ear piece in still, _"Rhoswen? You there? Hello?"_

"Jensen, cork it so I can say yes." I snap back as I hear the humming of an engine racing and branches of trees as they snap in my ear, "What the heck is all that background noise?"

"The Humvee. Our new mission is save the kids and then the pretty blonde who jumps off cliffs all while escaping an aerial strike that is about to hit and destroy everything within a three mile radius." Jensen's voice returns with a small laugh in it. I shake my head and holster my guns. I place my palms flat against the tree behind me and peek around it at Al-Fadhil's house.

"How heroic." I whisper back sarcastically and then lie my back against the tree again, "How did you get my frequency?"

_"Easy! I'm Jensen. Communication and Technology Extraordinaire!"_

"You really are good." I speak softly, peeking around the other side of the tree now to watch guards come out from the house. Several of them yell while others run to their newly designated posts, obviously having the boys in sight now.

_"I am? I mean of course I am!" _

I hear the disbelief and also excitement in his voice. He reminded me of a child himself in some aspects. It was a nice break from all the destruction and horror in the world around me, but only a little break; very little.

"Yeah, you are. You're making me jealous." I admit and lean back against the tree, "You'd have to be to work with Clay. Only the best of the best in his squads. That makes me** really** jealous."

"_Really now...you know he always said you-"_

_"Jensen! Is that her!"_

_"Yeah, I tapped into her line. I've been- Hey!"_

_"Rhoswen, where the hell are you!" _Clay's voice screeches in my ear, making me wince a little. I shake my head and then close my eyes, trying to make a mental map of the village.

"In the landscaping to the east of the village across from Al-Fadhil's house. He's keeping the kids in there." I open my eyes and look down at my feet, "I can make it and then meet you on the outskirts of the village to the west."

_"No. Rhos, you wait for us. That's a direct order. You understand me?"_

"No promises 'big brother'. Anyways, " I whisper and look around the tree again to the door of the house, "I've recently become a freelancer or haven't you heard?"

I hear several shouts from the house and I decide to step out of the landscaping, planning on running towards the house and the children. I stop dead when I hear the roar of an engine racing towards the front of the village and then hear guns screaming as they go off in all directions.

I look back at the house and then back down the path. I curse under my breath and then run down the long dirt path, hiding behind a crate off to the left. I peek around that crate and spot Clay and his group. I then spot a guard trying to pop in a new round into his Uzi, none of Clay's group noticing him apparently.

I run straight for the guard and skid between his legs, lifting myself on my elbows. I wrap my legs around his waist and then pull him to the ground. I clamber on top of him and strike him square in the face twice, knocking him unconscious.

"Rhos!" I feel two hands grab my upper arms and then feel myself being dragged off to the side behind a building. I'm pushed up against a wall, Clay glaring down at me as Roque walks away; the second pair of hands, "I told you to wait! That was a direct order!"

"I don't work for you anymore Clay and I don't need a babysitter! Or have you forgotten who the hell my father was! Who my brother was!" I yell back and take my arm from his hand, "I don't need you to **protect** me!"

"You could have been shot running out in the open like that! You don't think when you're angry! You just act! Just like your brother and father!" Clay yells back at me and I can feel the others watching us from down the little alley way, but I ignore them.

"I just saved **your **ass from being shot!" I yell back and give him a small push on the chest, glaring right back at him.

"Uh, hey can you two have your tiff later? We've got five minutes!" Jensen calls out, looking up from his watch. Clay and I look over at him, about to yell something at him when the corner of the wall is taken off in chunks by an array of bullets.

"I have to get the kids!" I call out and start to round the corner before Clay pulls me back to my spot, hand tightly holding me to the spot.

"Roque and **I** will get the kids! You go with Pooch and Jensen!" Clay orders and I look over at the techie and getaway for a split second.

"Oh hey! You can't drop her on us!" Pooch calls out from beside Jensen. I look back at Clay, but he looks over at the two and gives me a little push towards them.

"You could use the muscle!" Clay calls out and motions towards Roque to follow him.

"You'd better come back with those kids Clay! Or** I'll **shoot you in the ass!" I yell at him as he and Roque run to the other end of the alley. Clay looks back at me and then looks behind me at Jensen and Pooch.

"Jensen you watch her and make sure she doesn't do anything stupid!" Clay yells at Jensen and I scoff, shaking my head at him.

"Aye aye!" Jensen gives a small salute and wraps an arm around my shoulders.

"Oh, come on! That Humvee isn't going to hold everyone!" I yell as I run passed Jensen and then Pooch. We stop at the end of the alley and then quickly run to the next building, Pooch looking around the corner for any guards.

"Alright. It looks clear." Pooch speaks up as I lean back against the wall and watch from my spot. I see a guard walk out from the woods, his back turned to us.

"Not that clear..." I whisper and look at Pooch, who still had his gaze down to the right of the corner. I then look to Jensen, who was looking back down the alley we were in, and take my chance at a quiet assault.

I bolt from Jensen and pass Pooch, running out into the little road. I hear both Pooch and Jensen calling after me, but I ignore them and jump onto the guard's back. I wrap my arms firmly around his throat and tighten my legs, holding his arms at his sides. He swings left and right in a feeble attempt to get away from me while he gasps for air. He falls to his knees and then backwards, pinning me beneath him as he blacks out.

"Oh my God!" Jensen laughs, admiration fluttering in his voice as he and Pooch run up to me. I lie on the ground beneath the guy I had knocked out, my arms outstretched to who ever was going to help me from my prison.

"Who **are** you?" Jensen asks through another laugh and takes my arms, pulling me out from under the guard. He helps me to my feet while still grinning at me with slightly wide eyes.

"Come on lover boy. We have a getaway car to steal." I reply and then follow after Pooch who had run down the small path. I would have laughed with Jensen, but I was only starting to come out from my numbness.

"You're one of the coolest chicks I've ever meet!" I hear Jensen yell from behind me as we catch up to Pooch, who is standing in the middle of the little path and staring at something off to the side.

"What is it?" I ask and look to where Pooch was staring. Jensen stops between Pooch and me, following our gazes.

"No." Jensen suddenly says disbelievingly as we continue to stare at the mini bus parked to the side by the trees.

"Yes." Pooch replies, nodding his head as if it was no question.

"Really?" Jensen as as he and I look over at Pooch. I was completely confused as to the encrypted conversation they were having telepathically it seemed.

"Definitely." Pooch gives a small laugh, looking away from the bus.

"Okay." Jensen moves towards the bus and steps up into the open door.

"You two have obviously worked together for a while." I comment on their little 'conversation' and follow behind Jensen. I move towards the back of the bus, checking it over. I walk back to the front and sit in the seat opposite of Jensen in the front.

"Wouldn't happen to have a key would you, G.I. Jane?" Pooch asks, looking around the driver's seat for any sign of a key to start the bus up.

"No. Sorry. I think I can hot wire it though." I reply and stand from my seat, moving to the driver's. I quickly crawl on the floor of the bus and hot wire the bus, the engine roaring to life. Pooch and I switch seats as Jensen stares at me with a dumb smile on his face, "What?"

"You can hot wire too?" Jensen asks as Pooch pulls us out of the trees, the bus jumping up and down on the dirt road, "Is there anything you can't do?"

I nod my head with my eyebrows knitted together in slightly confusion.

"Lots of things." I reply and then think about what I couldn't do, "I can't hook up a computer right or a TV and I have trouble using electric stoves without burning myself. I can cook things alright with one though. I also trip _up_ stairs."

"Wow." Jensen shakes his head and laughs, "God, I love you. Marry me?"

"And we only just met." I retort softly, looking towards the back of the bus with a small smile. I take a deep breath and sigh heavily as Pooch continues to drive along the path.


	5. Burn

Sorry it took me so long to write a new chapter you guys. Enjoy!

Murphy's Law

"Stop!" I call out and stand up from my seat, heading towards the back of the bus. I look out the back window and watch Roque running towards us with the kids. I look back at Jensen, "Help Roque get the kids in."

I turn back to the emergency door and unlock it, swinging it open as Jensen runs down the steps of the bus. Roque quickly lifts the kids up with Jensen's help and I take them; one after the other and place them behind me.

"Where's Clay?" I ask Roque while I take another kid. I spot Cougar run up from behind Roque and Jensen, rifle on his back. He runs to the side of the bus and up the steps.

"Finishing the job." Roque growls back as he lifts another kid up to me. I shut the back door and lock it after the last kid is lifted into the bus, making sure it was secure. I push my way to the front of the bus and stand in the aisle. Cougar sat in a seat behind me and to the left with a kid while Roque and Jensen sat in the two front seats.

"Time to go!" Roque calls out and I round on him, my eyes hard.

"We can't leave Clay!" I yell at him. He looks back at me and shakes his head.

"We can't wait any longer!" I shake my head back at him and then move to the steps of the bus.

"Rhos! Come back!" I hear Jensen yell as I step onto the dirt path. I suddenly collide with something hard and then feel myself being picked up. I give a small yell as I feel myself slung over someone's shoulder and then the person heading up the stairs of the bus.

"I told you to watch her Jensen!" Clay yells and sets me on the ground, giving me a little push into the seat with Jensen. My back collides with Jensen's shoulder and I look over at Clay, who sat down in the seat with Roque.

"Where the hell were you!" I yell as Pooch starts the bus up again. Clay looks over at me with an angry stare.

"I was doing my job!" He yells back at me and shake my head.

"You're job!"

"Yeah, my job!"

"Well, are you alright!" I yell back, anger no longer in my voice.

"I'm fine!"

"Good! I was worried!" I cross my arms over my chest and turn around in my seat to sit right, staring out the front windshield of the bus.

"I was too." Clay tampers off, his gaze falling on the windshield as well. I look to my right at Jensen, noticing his blank stare.

"What?" I ask slowly, unsure of the look he was giving me. Jensen shakes his head and takes a quick look back at Clay before looking back at me.

"What was _that_?" He asks, dragging out his meaning.

"It's just the way were are." I answer with a shrug and look back out the windshield. Pooch continues to drive the bus out of the village while Jensen shouts constantly that he needs to drive faster.

"Pooch! Just drive faster!" I shout, unable to listen to Jensen anymore.

"Hold on!" Pooch calls out as he pushes the gas pedal into the floor. I grip onto the little barrier keeping Jensen and me in our seat as I watch the trees go by from the front windshield. My eyes slowly go wide as I see the trees up ahead disappear into nothing.

"Pooch! Hill! There's a hill!" I scream and point to the drop ahead of us. Unfortunately it was a little too late and we went off the hill with the explosion of the air strike behind us. We hit the slope harshly, me hitting my forehead on the barrier in front of the seat I sat in.

"Hold on to her damn it!" Clay shouts, looking passed me at Jensen. I feel my head ache and become dizzy slightly. I shake my head once swiftly and close my eyes tightly to the pain I had caused to surface.

The bus races down the hill as Pooch tries to stop us, making the bus skid and thrash left and right. I feel one of Jensen's arms cross over my belly and grip onto the seat edge beside me as if to keep me belted to my spot.

The bus continues to skid down the hill and then stops abruptly at the bottom as the front of the bus lands in a shallow puddle of mud. This time I don't hit my head. Jensen's arm had acted exactly like a seatbelt, but winded me.

"Everybody alright?" Clay asks, looking around at everyone. I nod my head and look over at Jensen.

"Your arm okay?" I ask and pull his arm from over my belly. He nods his head and flexes his arm, "You could have broken it doing that."

"That's better then what Clay would do." Jensen gives a small shaky laugh.

"Oh really?" I ask rhetorically, my lips forming a tight line. I turn around and hit Clay in the shoulder with a closed fist.

"What was that for!" Clay shouts, glaring at me.

"Because I can!" I shout back and stand up in my seat. Clay growls and also stands, looking around at the children who were laughing, "Nice job Clay."

I commented and look over at him with a small smile of appreciation. He nods his head and lets go of his arm where I had hit him.

"Alright, everybody out!" Clay shouts and moves from his seat. He, Roque, and Pooch are the first ones out the bus doors with the kids following after them. Cougar passes by Jensen and me and then we follow off the bus.

"Which way's North East?" I hear Jensen ask Cougar. I reach into one of the pockets on the front of my vest and pull out a compass as I walk along the line of standing children. I stop at the front of line of children beside Clay and Roque.

I look behind me and then pocket the compass. I look back at the children and try to remember what Spanish I knew.

(Please, be quiet!) "Por favor, cállate!" I call out and look around at the children. I take a deep breath and realease it, "Quién quiere ir a casa?" (Who wants to go home?)

The children all speak at once and I laugh, a bright smile on my face. I look to Clay beside me and laugh again before raising a finger to my lips and shushing the children.

"Bueno...vamos a llegar a un lugar seguro...Luego se irá a casa...pero hay que seguir con nosotros." I look around at all the little faces, "De acuerdo?" (Okay...we are going to get you to a safe place. Then you will go home...but you have to follow us. Alright?)

The children either nod or say yes and I point to the direction behind me. Then I make a motion for them to follow me as I start walking in the direction I had pointed to. Clay stays close at my heels, followed by the rest of them.

"You know where you're going?" Clay asks after a few moments of walking.

"You don't trust me?" I smile and then nod my head at his grunt, "You want North East right?"

I look over at him. He nods his head and gives a small snort of a laugh. I look behind me at the children, unconsciously smiling to myself and my thoughts.

"You wanna tell me about what happened now?" Clay asks suddenly, catching me offguard.

"About what?" I reply, my eyebrows knitting together. Clay stares at me hard and I shake my head, realizing what he was referring to. I was about to say something when I feel a tug on my hand. I look down between Clay and me to see a little girl with straight black hair holding my hand.

(Are you really taking us home?) "De verdad nos lleva a casa?" She asks in a small voice. I stare down at her and then smile, nodding my head.

(Yes...we are taking you home.) "Sí...estamos tomando a casa." I struggle to phrase the reply right and then smile at her again. I give her hand a reassuring squeeze and look over at Clay, "Let me be happy for a bit longer. Please?"

Clay nods his head and looks back before us at the jungle we needed to trudge through. I look back at the children again and then to Jensen and Cougar leading the back. I laugh to myself and then look back before me.

We continue to walk until we reach a clearing. A helicopter crosses the sky and circles before landing about a yard from us in the clearing. We all stop and watch the helicopter for a moment, wanting to be sure it was safe.

I look down at the girl, who held my hand tightly, and smile at her. I bend down and pick her up, placing her on my hip. The helicopter door opens and a soldier sticks his head out.

"Ves a ese hombre?" I ask and point to the soldier in the helicopter. The little girl nods her head and looks back at me. I think through what I want to say and then speak slowly, "Va...lo lleve a casa."

The girl smiles and I start to walk us over to the chopper. Clay moves ahead of me and to the open door of the chopper and the soldier.

"We can't take all of you! It's you or them!" The soldier calls out to Clay. I look over at him, my hair flapping around in the wind the propellers of the helicopter created. Clay looks down at me and the little girl I held, then at the children behind us.

"Take them!" Clay calls back to the soldier and takes the girl from my arms, lifting her into the chopper. I move to the left a little as Clay, Roque, Cougar, and I help the kids into the chopper. Cougar says something to the kids in Spanish, waving to them as he steps back.

I look over at Clay, crossing my arms over my chest as one of the boys tries to get him to take his bear. Clay laughs and pushes the bear back to the boy, shaking his head.

"You keep your bear. You keep it." Clay smiles, pushing the bear back to the boy again. I smile and walk back to where the others were, Clay following behind me. I turn back to the chopper and watch as it starts to lift into the air. I wave at the little faces in the window as the chopper rises higher.

"Do you hear that?" Roque asks, looking up at the sky. I look to Clay beside me and shrug my shoulders, not hearing anything, "It's sounds like screaming."

I look back at Roque with a laugh in my throat and spot something in the sky, soaring towards us. My smile falls and I quickly look back at the chopper.

"No!" I scream as the rocket shoots across the sky.

"Rose no!" Clay yells as I try to run towards the chopper. He grabs a hold of me, wrapping his arms around me tightly and pinning my arms beneath his. He tries to pull me back, but I flail the best I could, trying to break free.

"NO!" I scream again as the rocket hits the chopper. The explosion creates a bright array of yellows and reds as the chopper falls to the ground in heaps of burning metal and ashes. I scream out again, trying to rip myself away from Clay to run to the wreckage.

"You can't do anything!" Clay shouts and I start to fight harder, "There's nothing you can do!"

I thrash one way and then the other, accidentally causing Clay and me to fall to the ground on our knees.

"No!" I scream and struggle against him still, though I was beginning to wear myself down.

"There's nothing you can do Rhoswen." Clay breathes out in my ear as I stare out at the helicopter. I couldn't believe it. They were so close to being home and the little girl...

I slowly give in to what Clay is repeating in my ear softly and stop flailing. I feel pressure build behind my eyes as it starts to cloud my vision. Clay's hold on me loosens slightly as he pulls back a little to look down at me, making sure I was alright.

He reaches to my neck and pulls off my dog-tag. He then stands up and pulls off his, telling the others to do the same. He throws our tags into the burning flames of the helicopter and then walks back to where I still knelt on the ground.

"I can't do this anymore..." I whimper out softly.

"Rhoswen..." Clay kneels before me and takes my cheeks in his rough hands.

"I just can't...He's taken everything from me, Clay..." I speak up, my voice choppy and cracked. I feel the tears escape and trail down my dirt smudged cheeks, "My brother...my niece...everything's gone!"

Clay pulls me to him and lies my head on his shoulder, his hand holding my head there gently. I feel him breathe into the hair at the top of my head, whispering something I couldn't make out.

I couldn't take it anymore. Everything I had bottled up was now overflowing, ready to just explode. My brother, my niece, and now these kids...all dead while I was still alive and walking the earth when it was them that should be alive; living.

"It's all my fault...!" I cry out, letting go of all myself control, "Everything is my fault!"

"It is **not **your fault." Clay growled into my hair, looking out over the top of my head with glazed eyes, "All this blood is on Max's hands. Not yours!"

"Laura's dead because of me...! Because I couldn't..." I choke off and start to cry into Clay's shoulder, not caring that the others were watching from behind me. I wrap an arm around Clay's neck, covering my face completely in the crease of my elbow. The cracks and pops of the burning helicopter behind Clay continued to burn and with it burned my sorrows.


	6. Cards and Dolls

Hey you guys. Again I'm so sorry it's taking me so long to pump out these chapters. BTW, the movie comes to DVD July 20th. So excited! Please bare with me as I try to update this story. Thanks!

Murphy's Law

It's been two weeks since the incident with Max and the children. I felt...different. I felt lighter, more excepting, but not better about what Max had done. I would never be alright with what Max had done. What he was doing still. He would pay.

(Hey, sweetheart! Why don't you come over here?) "Hey, cariño! Por qué no vienes aquí?" I try to hold back my smile and look over at the man calling out to me. I roll my eyes and quickly cross the street, which consisted of dirt and dirt alone, and hopped up onto the broken sidewalk.

"Afternoon Clay." I greet, studying that he sat on a crate playing cards with two other familiar faces, "Playing cards again I see."

"Nothin' else better to do round here." Pooch comments and lays down a five of hearts.

"You can say that again." I nod my head slowly and look over at Clay's hand.

"Where were you heading off to?" Clay asks and picks up the five from the discarded pile with a smug grin lighting up his face.

"To see Cougar and Jensen. Why?" I narrow my eyes, but my look of suspicion is overturned by the bright smile fluttering onto my lips. Clay shakes his head, mumbling 'nothing' and sets down a seven of spades on the discard pile.

"Your turn Roque." Clay leans back on the crate a little and looks over at me, giving a small laugh.

"What?" I ask again, unable to hold back my own laugh. Roque places a king of clubs onto the discard pile and picks up a new card, cursing under his breath.

"Just going to see Cougar and Jensen, huh?" Clay asks me while he stares down at what was going on with the game he was in. I look around at all three men and see that Clay was the only one smiling.

"Why the hell is he grinning like that?" I ask Roque and Pooch, whoever would answer me. Pooch gives me a shrug and slams down his cards on the table.

"Look at that boys! Four queens and seven, eight, nine. Rummy." Pooch gives a laugh and pulls the little treats the boys had bet away in the game. Roque and Clay both throw their cards down, Clay's grin dispersing.

"I'm gonna leave now. See you all later." I give a small wave and turn around to leave, but the small laugh that escaped Clay made me turn around again, "What is it? Alright, this is creeping me out. So what?"

"What?" Clay laughs and leans forwards so his elbows rested on his knees.

"He's just happy to see you up and smiling." Roque speaks up for the first time, drawing my attention to him. I arch and eyebrow at his statement, not believing a word of it.

"What's the bet?" I ask, crossing my arms over my chest and letting the bagged lunches rest against my side. All three of them look at each other and Clay waves a hand at me, another smug grin on his face.

"Told you she knows all." Clay gives another laugh and pulls the cards together into a neat stack. I look around at the three of them again and narrow my eyes.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm part of this bet?" I ask sarcastically, awaiting to be told what the bet was.

"What would give you that idea?" Pooch asks with a smile. I nod my head and then turn around, walking away.

"Stay out of trouble!" I call back to them and continue down the opposite broken sidewalk of the small town we had set up shop since our 'death'. It was, after all, supposed to be us on the helicopter when the missile hit. To the United States of America we were all dead and gone forever.

I walk up to the familiar entrance to one of the only places to work in town and step inside. I could smell the faint scent of oil and plastic as I walked further, workers glancing at me every now and then.

"Rosa!" I smile the best I could at the woman with dark brown curls as I walk through the toy factory. It was a crap hole like most the town, but it was a place to work and when there was hardly any work you take what you can get.

"Hola Maria." I reply and walk passed her further into the factory. I switch the paper bags I carried with me to my other hand as I walked passed conveyor belts. I walk passed several tables until I spot the two I had been searching for.

A familiar blonde with glasses elbows the dark haired man to his right and then nods towards me. I smile softly and continue towards them, tucking the bags behind my back though I knew they had already seen them.

"Ah, look Cougar! It's an angel come to visit us in Hell!" Jensen smiles as I walk up. He sets aside the doll he was working with and slaps his hands onto the tops of his thighs. He wore a white sleeveless shirt and had sweat rolling down in long beads on the sides of his face, "Haven't seen you for a while."

"I know and I'm sorry. After..." I stop and lick my lips, "I haven't felt myself since the incident."

"Understandable." Cougar speaks up and passes Jensen the doll he had in his hands. Cougar didn't look much better then Jensen. His hair, though dark, had become slightly greasy from sweat and he hunched over tiredly from a long day of work.

Jensen takes the doll and dresses it, making me give a small laugh. I shake my head and close my eyes, trying to hold back the rest of my laughter that had randomly built up in my system.

"This is sad. Grown men _literally_ playing with dolls." I crack a grin at them both and then laugh once more.

"No, we're **working** with dolls. Actually _on _the dolls, but you get it." Jensen tosses the dressed doll into the pile he had accumulated beside him.

"Have you taken your lunch break?" I ask nonchalantly as I watched them work.

"Do we ever?" Jensen scoffs and fights with a dress that just won't go over the dolls head right.

"Because I brought you two lunch." I announce and lift the paper bags up for them to see. Cougar and Jensen look to each other and then Cougar turns to look behind him.

(Jensen and I are taking our lunch break!) "Jensen y yo estamos tomando nuestra hora de almuerzo!" Cougar calls back to Maria, who only nods and waves them off. Jensen and Cougar throw aside the dolls they had and stood up from their seats, coming around the table.

"Here." I hand each of them their paper bag lunch and fold my hands before me. Cougar looks down at the paper bag and smiles, looking back at me.

"Let's go to the clearing." He places a hand on my shoulder and nudges me towards the open doors of the factory. I follow in between the two and down the street till we hit the start of the Bolivian jungle. This had become, as Clay now called us, 'The Losers' meeting spot for when we didn't think our affairs should be spoke of in town.

I sit down on the fallen log, crossing my legs at the ankles as Jensen sits down on the ground beside me. I watch Cougar sit on a tree stump, opening his bag and peeking inside.

"So, what do you want?" I turn and look down at Jensen, confused by what he meant. I shake my head and narrow my eyes before I shrug, "You have a complete meltdown, you stop talking to all of us, and then suddenly you wake up one morning and decide to make Cougar and me lunch?"

"Oh," I start as realization sets in on me, "no, this is sort of more like an 'I'm sorry' then an 'I want something'."

"Nothing to be sorry for." Cougar speaks up and takes a bite out of the sandwich I had made.

"Are you always this laid back and understanding?" I ask with a laugh. I had noticed out of the entire squad that Cougar was the quietest and easiest to talk too. It was a blessing, especially when you had a motor mouth like Jensen around.

"Only with pretty girls. Right Cougar?" Jensen laughs out and earns a sideways glance from Cougar. I laugh along with Jensen and then stare out at the trees circling the clearing. The air falls quiet between the three of us as the two boys eat their lunch.

"Tell me something Rosa." I look over at Cougar and wait for him to continue, "Why do you blame yourself for your brother and your niece?"

I look down at the grass beneath my feet and think about the question. I knew that I had no reason to blame myself. There was nothing I could have done for them, but that didn't change me feeling like I should have.

"Coug your timing sucks." Jensen speaks up and crushes his paper bag into a ball. I shake my head and then lick my lips, preparing myself to answer Cougar's question.

"No it's okay." I reply and look back at the grass again, "I blame myself because...I feel like it was my job to protect them. They were my family. The only one I had and I...I wasn't there when they needed me. I should have been, but I wasn't. I just feel like I let them down or betrayed them or something."

I look over at Cougar, wondering if he understood what I meant. Cougar stared back at me and then nodded slowly, looking away at the paper bag in his hand.

"Who was older?" Cougar asks after another moment.

"What do you mean?" I ask through a small, uncomfortable laugh. Cougar looks back at me and nods to me.

"You or your brother?" He clarifies, confusing me more. What did it matter who was older? Or maybe he was just curious?

"My brother was. By six years." I reply softly. I watch Cougar nod his head and look down at the ground. I look down at Jensen, silently asking him what was wrong with Cougar. Jensen shrugs and looks at his friend in question. I soon follow his gaze and stare at the quiet sniper.

"It was not your fault." Cougar speaks after a long moment, earning mine and Jensen's attention once again. Cougar shakes his head as he drifts further into his own thoughts, "Older brother's are supposed to protect their siblings. Not the other way around. There was nothing you could have done."

Cougar's expression seemed to darken as he stared out at nothing. I continue to stare at Cougar, something clicking in my head. It made a little sense as to why Cougar was acting this way, but I wished to God I was wrong.

"Okay...that wasn't creepy." Jensen speaks up sarcastically and then stands from the ground. I ignore him and lock my eyes on Cougar's hunched over form. His grieving form.

"Are you an older brother?" I ask softly, my eyes never leaving him. Cougar lifts his gaze from the clearing floor and stares at me. His eyes burned with guilt and wrath and I knew instantly I was right, "You lost a sibling too."

I sense Jensen's eyes move from Cougar to me and then back again, unsure of what to do now. It was strange for me too, but somehow with Cougar being the one to tell me it wasn't my fault it actually made me feel like it wasn't. It sort of felt like my brother was telling me for himself that it wasn't.

"Whoa...this is starting to feel like the twilight zone." Jensen's knack for useless and meaningless comments kicked in, reminding me that we weren't alone. I blink a few times and look up at Jensen, who shrugged an apology at me. I shook my head and stood from the log I had been sitting on.

"Thank you Cougar." I look back at the cowboy hat wearing sniper. He nods his head and stands from the stump, walking over to where Jensen and I were. A thought sparks in my head and I grab the boys before they could walk away.

"What is it?" Jensen asks, looking at me through his shaded glasses.

"You know I've been working over at the Lagarto cojera right?" I ask quickly, feeling embarrassed for even thinking the idea now.

"Yes." Cougar replies and turns around to face me fully.

"Why haven't you come to watch me with the others?" I feel my face heat up and my mouth become dry, but it was to late to turn back now. Jensen's head snaps to Cougar, his eyes asking the same question. He crosses his arms over his chest and stares at Cougar.

"You want to tell the nice lady that made us lunch why we haven't seen her sing?" Jensen asks like he was scolding a child. Cougar looks at Jensen and then back at me.

"I thought you wanted space. To be away from all of us." Cougar answers honestly. I chew on my bottom lip for a moment and then nod my head.

"Well, would you two come watch me sing tonight?" I look between them, wondering what was going through their heads. They look at each other and Jensen gives Cougar a shrug, acting as though it wasn't a bad idea.

"Yeah why not? It's not like we've got anything else goin' on." Jensen replies for him and Cougar, making me grin.

"Really?" I ask, not believing what I had heard. I mean, yeah I kind of guessed they would say yes, but a little part of me screamed it would be no. Jensen and Cougar both nod their heads, "Okay great! Uh, I go on at eight, but the others should be there around seven-thirty. See you then! Bye!"

I rush passed the two and out of the clearing. I hit the sidewalk and head into the center of town, heading towards the Lagarto cojera.


	7. Up In Flames

Murphy's Law

"Wait, so your dad was Clay's General?" Jensen asks for a third time as he stares at me with wide eyes. I nod my head again and give a laugh as I raise my drink to my lips. The Lagarto Cojera was over crowded and every person inside was trying to speak over everyone else. There was the distinct scent of smoke and stale beer in the humid air that just told you low class.

"Uh yeah. For ten years." I repeat my answer and take a sip of my water, licking my lips as I set the glass back on the table, "Why is that so hard to believe?"

"I don't know. I just can't picture Clay taking orders from anyone." Jensen slowly shook his head and kept his eyes on me, "And you were a soldier too?"

"Yes sir." I reply and give a sarcastic salute, "First Lieutenant Rhoswen Moriarty. At your service."

Jensen becomes oddly quiet as he continues to stare at me, mouth agape slightly. I stare back at him with a small smile and then slowly look over at Cougar.

"Is he alright?" I ask and look back at Jensen, who had yet to look away from me.

"Pienso que está en el amor Rosa." Cougar replies as I give a loud laugh. (I think he is in love, Rosa.)

"I am not! It's just..." Jensen falls quiet again and stumbles over his words, trying to put together the right ones. I give another laugh and take a sip of my water, trying not to choke on it. Cougar looks over at Jensen and raises his beer to his lips, giving a small laugh as he drinks the last of it down.

"Damn. Finally found a way to shut you up!" The sudden voice snaps Jensen from whatever sentence he was trying to form in response to Cougar's joking. Pooch sits down beside me and leans on the table, folding his hands together, "Wish we'd met you sooner, Rhos."

"Me too actually." I smile and tap my nails against the glass I had yet to let go of. I stare down at the beads of condensation rolling down the sides and begin to think about my life as a First Lieutenant. I shake my head at my thoughts at the laughter of Pooch beside me.

"That's what your mother said last night!" Pooch laughs and I give a small laugh of my own at the expression on Jensen's face. Jensen nods his head slowly, his eyes narrowing.

"I bet Jolene would love to hear you talking like that." Jensen retorts, sipping his beer. I knit my eyebrows together and look at Pooch in question.

"My wife." Pooch explains reluctantly.

"I didn't know you were married." I comment and look around the table at the others as if to confirm it.

"Yeah well Pooch was married and about to be a father. Not Parker Mulligan the deadbeat car mechanic working on Mercado street." Pooch comments and looks down at the wedding band encircling his ring finger, "I swear if I'm not there when Jolene goes into labor I'll strangle Clay."

"I know you want to go home. That all of you want to go home and Clay is trying. He really is, but it's gonna take a little time to find a way out of this hell hole." I give reproachfully and look back down at my glass.

"Yeah and if he doesn't I'll be stuck dressing dolls for the rest of my life." Jensen scoffs and chugs the rest of his beer.

"Oh come on! I saw you playing with them today!" I laugh and take my hands from my glass, lacing them in my lap.

"Was not!" Jensen retorts and leans back in his chair. I nod my head and try to keep my laughter down.

"Don't worry. You're all alone. Ken is nowhere to be found." I laugh after repeating what I had heard, "By the way, why is everything sexual with you?"

"Not everything." Jensen tries to defend himself.

"Oh yes it is." Pooch affirms and stares at Jensen sternly, "Everything. 'Let Godzilla sock it to you'. Remember that?"

"That was just...I was...it was..." Jensen stumbles over his words further only making the rest of us laugh. I lean on the table and quickly run a hand through my hair. The table falls silent as each of us has nothing more to say while the noise within Lagarto Cojera began to die down.

I turn my head and watch Cougar stand up from the seat beside me, picking up his hat from the table. He looks down at us and tips his hat.

"La noche buena mis amigos." Cougar walks away and out the door as Pooch slowly stands from his seat. (Goodnight, my friends.)

"Yeah, I think I'm gonna call it a night too." Pooch throws his jacket he had set on the back of his chair over his shoulder and walks towards the open doors of the bar. I take a sip of my water and tap the glass again, feeling slightly uncomfortable being left with Jensen.

"So..." Jensen starts as I look over at him. He gives a small uncomfortable laugh and licks his lips, looking away from me. I give a small laugh and let go of my glass, leaning back in my seat once more, "Is Rhoswen your real name...?"

"I'm sorry?" I ask, unsure of what he had said.

"What?" Jensen asks immediately and stares at me with slightly alarmed eyes. I knit my eyebrows together and shake my head once.

"You said something." I comment as Jensen swallows hard as if being caught red handed.

"Oh! Oh yeah. That." He gives a small laugh and then shakes his head, not really finding it funny, "Is Rhoswen...your real name?"

"No, actually my real name is Gertrude." I reply as straight faced as I could. Jensen gives a laugh, but stops suddenly when he sees I'm not laughing with him.

"Your serious?"

"No!" I laugh finally, "I'd kill myself if my name was Gertrude. What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Jensen's not your first name. So what is?" I ask with a smile as I lace my hands around my cool glass.

"Uh, it's Jake. Not short for Jacob or anything. Just Jake." Jensen nods his head a little and I do too. It seemed to fit him perfectly.

"Jake Jensen. No middle name?"

"Bartholomew." Jensen cracks a grin as I start laughing again, "Just kidding."

Our conversation continues, taking us down roads neither of us normally would have gone on. The bar was nearly empty and most of the tables had the chairs piled on them. Jensen and I had left, seeing as the barkeeper wanted to close up for the night. We began walking the streets and continuing to talk as we headed towards the hotel Clay and I were staying at.

"Where are you from? I mean, where were you born?" Jensen gives a small cough and shoves his hands into his jean pockets.

"New York. Didn't we already go over this?" I laugh and cross my arms over my chest.

"Yeah I know that, but what city?"

"Little place called Syracuse. Home of the Orange men and the cheapest whores." I laugh and look down at the cracked sidewalk beneath my feet.

"Sounds like my house growing up." Jensen mumbles and gives a fake shiver. I smack his arm and shake my head, laughing though my stomach was sore.

"Your parents fight a lot?" I ask carefully as we continued on down the sidewalk. Jensen nods his head and then gives a small shrug, "Mine did too. Mostly because they were both used to being in charge at work and when it came to who was in charge at home...it was a free for all."

"Was your mom in the army?"

"Yeah, she got all her medical training there." I smile at the memory of my mother and then sigh heavily, "God if my parents were alive right now...they'd have the entire army, navy, and national guard out looking for me."

"Yeah well if I had a daughter and she was like you I'd have her under lock and key." Jensen laughs as i knit my eyebrows together. I stop walking and turn to him, tilting my head slightly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I ask, honestly curious.

"What's what supposed to mean?"

"If she was like me." I clarify and watch him as he tried to concoct an answer. He opens his mouth to say something, but the sound of a sudden explosion catches us both by surprise. He and I both look behind me where an array of flames and smoke stretched high into the night sky.

"What the hell?" I ask no one in particular as I stare at the burning building.

"I dunno, but come on." Jensen grabs my hand and pulls me behind him towards the fire. My eyes grow wider as I realize the burning building was the hotel Clay and I were staying at.

"Oh my God." The words escape my lips slowly as I watch the towns people try to put out the fire. I gently place my free hand on Jensen's bicep as my mind goes blank, "Oh my God...oh my God! Clay!"

"What?" Jensen looks down at me as I stare off at Clay, who was walking down the sidewalk towards us. I let go of Jensen and run at Clay, wrapping my arms around him in a tight hug. I pull away and stare up at him, noticing his disarrayed hair and swollen lip.

"Did you...?" I ask slowly as I study his slightly bruised cheek. Jensen walks up beside us as I gingerly touch Clay's cheek, "Clay, did you get into a fight?"

"I just ran out of a burning building and you're asking me if I got into a fight?" Clay stares down at me with a small smirk twitching at the side of his lips.

"I'm not hearing a no." I cross my arms over my chest and stare right back at him. Clay gives a small shrug and pushes passed me. He begins walking down the sidewalk, confusing me. I look at Jensen, "Where the hell is he going?"

"I don't know." Jensen replies quickly, but I had already turned to watch Clay walk away.

"Hey! Where are you going!" I call out to him. I spot him shrug and then slowly turn around to face us.

"Meet me at 132 Santo Street tomorrow at noon." He calls back and then starts walking again, "And tell Cougar and Pooch the same!"

I look back at Jensen once Clay had disappeared and shake my head. Jensen opens his mouth to say something, but quickly closes it again.

"Where are you gonna stay?" He finally pipes up. I look away from the burning hotel to him again, realizing I had no where else to stay.

"Goddamn it..." I say finally and run a hand through my hair. I close my eyes and shake my head, cursing Clay.

"You could stay with me and Cougar." Jensen offers as I look over at him tiredly, "I-If you want to that is. Only if you want to."

"It's that or sleep outside." I give in and wave my hand at him, "Lead on."

Jensen nods his head and turns on his heels, heading back the way we had walked. I trail beside him and nearly run into him when he stops suddenly. He opens the door to the small two story restaurant.

"Why didn't you and Cougar get a room at the hotel?" I ask as I walk into the restaurant. I wait for Jensen to follow and watch as he passes me, heading to a stair case off to the side behind a doorway.

"Because Coug likes his privacy. Or something like that. I don't know." Jensen replies as I start up the stairs.

"Which door?" I look behind me at Jensen quickly and then look back at the top of the stairs.

"Second on the right." I nod my head and look to the second door on the right, "It's open."

"Why?" I ask through a yawn. Jensen bounces up onto the second story floor from the stairs and walks behind me.

"No lock."

"Whoa what?" I spin around on my heels and stare at him. How could the door not have a lock? I stare at him with my mouth agape. I had to have a door with a lock, "Aren't you guys afraid of a burglar or murderer or something?"

"Uh no?" Jensen looks down at me with a goofy expression on his face and lets go of the door knob, outstretching his hand to me, "I'm sorry. Have we met?"

"What?" I ask, feeling another yawn building up in my throat. I shake my head once and look down at his hand in question. I give a small laugh and nod my head, realizing what he meant, "Right...two grown men, who were both soldiers. Gotcha."

"Exactly." Jensen gives a small laugh as I lean against the wall. I cross my arms over my chest and close my eyes, "If any burglars break in, Coug and I will take care of 'em."

"Thanks." I laugh again and push myself off from the wall.

"I don't understand why you'd be scared of something like that though." Jensen speaks up and opens the door to the room, "I mean you were a soldier too and you kick ass."

"Yeah I guess." I start through a yawn. I spot a couch in the middle of the room and walk over to it. I plop down on it and curl up into a ball, "I'm still a girl though Jensen."

"Trust me. I know you're a girl." Jensen gives a laugh and pulls a blanket from a drawer of the small dresser. He walks over to me and hands me the blanket, sitting down on the cheap chair a few feet away, "So what does it mean?"

"What?" I take a deep breath and let out a yawn, pulling the blanket up over my shoulders. I snuggle into the arm of the couch and sigh.

"That your still a girl though." Jensen clarifies and leans back in the chair.

"I want to be the one _being _protected sometimes." I yawn again as I feel myself drifting away.

"But you can protect yourself." Jensen argues and I can hear the misunderstanding floating in his voice. I give a small laugh and yawn once more.

"That's not the point." I open my tired eyes and look over at him. He sat hunched over in the cheap chair, staring back at me, "There are three things that women want in life."

"And those would be?" I laugh at Jensen's expression and rearrange myself on the couch.

"1) Women want to be accepted for who she is. We really don't want to be fixed. That makes us insecure. 2) We want to be respected. 3) We want to be protected even if we can protect ourselves. We want to feel safe."

"Even you?" Jensen asks carefully and I nod my head slowly.

"Never did until I was left alone in this world." I close my eyes again and pull the blanket tighter around me, "Night Jensen."

**~Third Person POV~**

"Yeah...night." Jensen's voice floats away as Rhoswen drifts off into the world of sleep. He stares at her sleeping form, lost in his own thoughts. Footsteps sound from the narrow hallway behind him as Cougar leans against the doorway.

"Rosa asleep?" Jensen looks to his friend and gives a small nod, "Qué es?"

"I don't know how she does it." Jensen speaks up and looks back at her. Jensen shakes his head and leans his elbows on his thighs. Cougar's gaze falls on the sleeping girl as he crosses his arms over his chest.

"She feels she has to keep living her life for them." Cougar speaks up and pushes himself from the doorway.

"...Liam...Laura..." Rhoswen mumbles in her sleep as she rearranges herself, drawing both of their eyes to her.

"If Rhoswen dies then who is left to remember her family? If she dies...then they are dead in every sense of the word." Cougar speaks again and then walks back down the hall, leaving Jensen in the chair. Jensen nods his head and stands up, heading down the hall to his room.


	8. Laundry

You guys, I'm really sorry if the translations suck.

I'm a Latin major, not a Spanish major and so I usually go to google translations to help me.

Murphy's Law

I slowly open my eyes to the sunshine glaring through the windows that sat down by my feet. I run a hand over my face, trying to wake myself up as I felt something slip from my arms. I look down at myself and see a blanket on top of me.

"How did...?" Slowly, one by one, the events of last night came back into mind and I recognized where I was now. I sit up and look around the room, taking notice to how dirty it was. The paint was chipping from the walls and the molding was cracked. The wood floors were stained in several spots, most likely from some sort of oil. In the corner was a basket that was overflowing with dirty clothes, probably Jensen and Cougar's work clothes.

I throw the blanket off of me and stand up from the couch, stretching till my back cracked. I fold the blanket neatly and set it on the back of the couch. I fix the cushions the best I can and then walk to the basket, staring down at it with my hands on my hips.

"Men..." I shake my head and give a small laugh. I pick up the basket and place it on my hip, heading towards the front door of their little apartment. I spot a woman coming out of another room down the hall and wave to her, calling her over. She smiles at me and walks closer, her dress swaying as she did.

"Dónde está el aseo?" I ask as I rearrange the basket on my hip. (Where is the washroom?)

"Es su nombre...Rosa?" She asks with a smile and watches me with slightly narrowed, but knowing eyes. (Are you...Rosa?)

"Uh, si." I reply, curious as to how she knew my name. She gives a small nod and then smiles, nodding her head towards the stairs.

"Me llamo Isabell. Estoy en mi manera allí ahora." (My name is Isabell. I am on my way there now.) She replies with a smile and then nods towards the basket I carried, "El lavado del chico que hace?" (Doing the boy's wash?)

"Sí, porque son demasiado perezosos hacerlo sí mismos." I laugh and follow her down the stairs. (Yes, because they are too lazy to do it themselves.)

"Cuánto tiempo los ha sabido usted?" (How long have you known them?) The woman asks as she leads me down the stairs. She takes a quick glance back at me and I shake my head.

"No mucho tiempo." I reply and follow her through a doorway, leading into the kitchen. (Not long.)

"Realmente? Porque ellos siempre hablan de usted." (Really? Because they always talk about you.) She replies with a faint grin tugging at the corners of her small mouth.

"Qué?" I ask surprised and follow her into the washroom. There are two basins of water and a make shift drying rack set up on a corner. I set the basket of dirty clothes down and look over at her at the other basin, "Quién? Qué dicen?" (Who? What do they say?)

"Por lo general, la rubia; Jensen. Le gusta hablar, pero él siempre está pidiendo lo que el señor Cougar piensa en ti." (It's generally the blonde; Jensen He likes to talk, but he is always asking what Mister Cougar thinks of you.) She gives a small laugh and pulls some clothes from the basin, walking them to the make shift drying rack, "El también pregunta si tiene a un novio."

"Realmente?" I give my own laugh and throw some of the boys clothes in the basin before me, taking the stick stuck in the water to move them around. I laugh again at the thought of Jensen asking Cougar if he thought I had a boyfriend, "Qué más te dijo?" (What else did he say?)

**~Third Person POV~**

Cougar walks out from his room, leaving his bedroom door open along with the window inside. He fixes his hat on his head and walks passed Jensen's room, heading into the living room. He stops in the doorway and stares at the empty couch, blinking several times as if to process what exactly he was seeing.

"Rosa?" He calls out, looking around the room in vain. He knits his eyebrows together and walks into the kitchen, no sign of her there either. He then heads back out into the living room, "Esto no es bueno..." (This is not good...)

He walks back down the hallway just to see if she was in the bathroom, but finds it empty. He walks back down the hall and stops at Jensen's door. He knocks roughly and then waits, looking back down the hall to the living room beyond the doorway.

"Jensen!" Cougar bangs on the door again and then opens it. Jensen laid in on his bed on his stomach, mouth agape, and covers barley on him. Cougar walks over to him and shakes his shoulder, "Jensen despiértese! Rosa es ido! Levántese!" (Jensen wake up! Rosa is gone! Get up!)

Cougar suddenly tears the covers off of Jensen and shakes him rougher. Jensen groans and sits up in his bed, staring at Cougar tiredly.

"What? What is it?" He snaps and searches the nightstand for his glasses, yawning in the process, "Where's the fire, Coug?"

"No fire. It's Rosa." Cougar replies quickly and takes a step back from the bed. Jensen throws his feet over the side of the bed and takes a deep breath, trying to wake up, "She's gone."

"What? Gone where?" Jensen snaps wide awake and hops out of the bed, "Where could she have gone? It's a small apartment!"

"She's not in the apartment. I checked." Cougar replies giving a small shrug of his shoulders. Jensen just stares at him with wide eyes and mouth agape.

**~Rhoswen's POV~**

I hear Jensen yell suddenly through the door to his and Cougar's 'apartment' and give a small laugh, shaking my head.

"Aquí Rosa." I look back at Isabell, who stood in her open doorway with a light yellow dress in hand. I smile and take it from her.

"Ah, gracias." I look back at her and she nods her head. Another yell comes from the boy's apartment, making us both laugh, "Quizá debería ir a asegurarse de que todo está bien. Gracias de nuevo." (I should probably go and make sure everything is alright. Thanks again.)

I walk away with the basket of clean clothes and open and close the front door to the boys apartment. I walk over to the couch and set the basket of clean laundry down on the floor. I pick up a shirt and start folding it, placing it on the couch as the start of a pile.

I hear footsteps heading my way and look behind me at the doorway to the hall. Jensen was standing there in nothing more then a shirt and boxers, staring at me dumbly. He opens his mouth to speak, but stumbles over his words.

"Morning to you too." I greet with a laugh and turn back to my work, placing a pair of folded jeans on the couch beside the shirt. I pick up another shirt and fold it, listening to another pair of footsteps walk up. I smile and place the shirt on the shirt pile, knowing who the other footsteps belonged to, "Morning Cougar."

I look behind me again and study the expression on their faces. They looked confused and a little surprised though I had no idea why. I smile at them and place another shirt on the shirt pile. Both of them stare at me strangely, making me stop my work. I turn to face them and put my arms over my chest.

"What?" I ask finally with a small laugh, "You look as if you're staring at a ghost."

"You were just doing laundry?" Jensen asks slowly. I give a small nod which makes Jensen look to Cougar with a blank expression crossing his face. Cougar gives him a small shrug and walks into the living room, heading towards me. He picks up a shirt from the basket and starts to fold it.

"Nice boxers Jensen." I give a small laugh at the weenier dogs printed on his boxers. Jensen looks down at himself and then looks back at me. I laugh again and turn back to the clean clothes, "Go get dressed."

"Yeah. Good idea." Jensen walks back down the hall and into his room, leaving Cougar and me to folding the clean clothes. I look over at Cougar as I folded a pair of pants, waiting for him to answer my silent question of what was going on.

"I came out this morning and you were gone." Cougar speaks up after another moment.

"And you thought...?" I start, shaking my head a little and trying to think of a way to finish the sentence, "What? What did you think?"

"I'm not sure." Cougar admits honestly and looks over at me. I give him a smile and look back at the basket of clean clothes. I shake my head and pick up another pair of pants, folding them and placing them on the pile.

"So," Jensen's voice came from the doorway. He walks further into the living room and sits in the cheap chair off to the side of the couch, "Do you make breakfast too?"

"Hahaha, very funny." I give a sarcastic laugh and toss a shirt I knew to be his at him. He catches it easily and rolls it into a ball, setting it in his lap. I look at him and then at Cougar, "Don't you two have to go to work?"

"Wait, what time is it?" Jensen asks and then looks to the watch on his wrist, "Shit it's eight. Coug we gotta go. We're gonna be late."

Jensen hops up from his chair and walks to the front door. Cougar sets the shirt he was folding on the pile and then looks to me.

"Gracias Rosa." Cougar leans closer to me and gives me a swift kiss on my cheek before walking over to Jensen. Jensen stares down at him hard and his eyes follow Cougar as he walks passed him, out the door.

"What was that?" Jensen asks with slight irritation circling in his voice as he closes the door behind him. I give a loud laugh and continue to fold the clothes until none are left in the basket except the dress I had asked to borrow from Isabell.

I look to the piles on the couch and decide to leave them there. I had little clue which shirt and pants belonged to whom and I wasn't about to try and sort them only to be wrong.

I walk over to the windows in the living room and open them, letting in the warm air from outside. I watch the people below as they walk passed. My mind traveled off to the night before when I had seen Clay.

"132 Santo Street at noon." I whisper out the address Jensen and I had been given. I look back around the room of the small apartment and sigh, "What am I supposed to do for four hours?"

I look back out the open window and look out at the street below. Several vendors were set up carrying fruits, vegetables, and what looked to be chickens. I give a small laugh and walk back into the room, heading to the front door. Today was going to be a roaming day it seemed.

I head out onto the cracked streets of the town, having no place set in mind to go to. All I needed to do was stall for a little while. I ended up in front of a small mechanics shop and walk inside. I spot Pooch beneath a car on a rise and walk closer, avoiding the tools on the ground.

"Hey Parker!" I call out to Pooch and walk a little closer. Pooch removes the face guard and turns off the welder, looking over at me.

"Hey! What're you doing here?" He walks out from under the rise and sets his face guard on a tool chest. I give a small shrug and look around the workshop.

"You seen Clay today?"

"Uh no, but if you're looking for him he's probably watchin' those damn cock fights with Roque." Pooch picks up a rag from the chest and wipes his face free of sweat.

"No, I'm not." I shake my head and then stop suddenly, "Wait you mean like rooster rights? They still exist?"

Pooch gives a hearty laugh and nods his head, as he wipes down the back of his neck. I shake my head, trying to rid of the distraction, and look back at him.

"Okay then...Well I just wanted to make sure you knew that we're all meeting at 132 Santo Street today." I explain and rock on my heels. Pooch shakes his head and throws the rag down.

"Did he tell you why we're meeting?" Pooch asks and leans back against the tall tool chest, crossing his arms over his chest. I shake my head and look over at the clock on the wall above the rise.

"Nope. He just told us to be there at noon. Which is in two hours." I give Pooch a sarcastic bright smile and then laugh. Pooch nods his head and rubs the back of his neck, "I guess I'll be heading out then."

"Alright. Where are you headin?" Pooch asks and pushes himself off the tool chest, grabbing his face guard. I give a shrug and begin walking backwards towards the open doors of the workshop.

"Where ever the wind takes me." I place a hand over my heart and look up at the ceiling dramatically. I take a deep breath and let out a loud sigh, trying to hold back my laughter that was building up in my chest.

"Okay now that was corny. Even for you." Pooch tries to hold back a smile, but soon fails. He gives a small laugh and points at me, "Be careful, alright?"

"God, you all act like my brother. Over protective as shit." I laugh and flail my arms. I cross them over my chest and shake my head at him. Pooch gives a shrug and walks beneath the rise, putting the face guard back on.

"If you get hurt Clay will break our legs!" Pooch calls out to me as I walk out the doors. I continue on down the street, keeping in mind I only had two hours left till I had to be at Santo Street. I hadn't thought about what Clay wanted to speak with us about till now and I just couldn't seem to answer it. What was so important that he just had to call a meeting so suddenly?

I shake my head at my thoughts and look up from the sidewalk beneath my feet. I had walked myself to what was left of the burned down hotel and stood staring at the remains. Another question popped into my mind, one that involved the bruises on Clay's cheek.

"Who were you fighting with last night?" I ask softly as I watched several people searching through the ash and wood fragments. I couldn't help but feel that the fight, the fire, and the meeting today were connected. Knowing Clay, they were one and the same, which meant we would soon be finding ourselves in a lot of trouble.


	9. Foreboding

Thank you all for the wonderful reviews!

Murphy's Law

I had walked all over town and then back again to try and fill my time. It was now eleven thirty and I was currently walking down the long, crooked street heading towards Santo street. I could see my destination a few blocks away and I couldn't help, but laugh at what it was I was heading towards.

Of course it would be a graveyard. It had to be something so grim because it was Clay, our ever dramatic leader.

I hop up onto the sidewalk and head into the graveyard, the bottom of the dress I wore swaying as I walked. I wasn't exactly thrilled with the dress since it hugged me a little more then I liked, but I had to admit it did look good on me.

"There she is!" I lift my head from the ground at Pooch's voice. He stood up the little cobble street, waving at me, "Hey Rhos! Over here!"

I give a small wave back to him and continue at my pace. I was in no hurry to get to them or to the tombs they currently stood at. I spot Clay standing a little further in the graveyard, hands in the same suit he had been wearing the night before. Off to the far right was Roque sitting on a tomb, playing with one of his many knives.

"Where's Jensen and Cougar? I thought they would have beaten me for sure." I ask as I walk up to them, sitting down on a tomb beneath a tree. My legs dangle a little above the ground, giving them a break from all the walking I had done.

"Don't know." Clay responds and walks closer to the rest of us. I nod my head and then look out across the graveyard. It was a nice graveyard with it's stone markers and beautifully crafted angels in various spots, but it was still a graveyard and that still meant it was creepy.

"This is a little spooky." I give a small laugh and lay my hands in my lap, "Being in a graveyard I mean. Especially since we're 'dead' and all."

"I didn't pick the spot." Clay gives a small laugh and looks over at me. His eyebrows knit together as he gives me a once over, "Are you really wearing a bright yellow dress?"

"No, you're just seeing things. Vision is the first thing to go at your age." I smile brightly as I bash my eyelashes. Clay nods his head and then laughs, some smart ass comment obviously making it's way into his head.

"Yeah you're right. You wearing a dress would mean you're actually a girl." Clay gives another laugh and shoves his hands into his pants pocket. I give a sarcastic laugh and shake my head at him, leaning back on the tomb I sat on.

"What do you mean you didn't pick the spot?" I ask and sit up straighter. Clay gives a small shrug and looks out across the graveyard.

"This girl we're meeting with, Aisha, picked it." Roque spoke up from his spot so far away. I look passed Clay and Pooch, smiling.

"Oh my God! Is that you, Roque? I thought you were another statue." I continue to stare at Roque's back and try to stifle my laughter when I see him slowly sheath his knife to his hip. He slowly turns around and stares at me blankly.

"Rhos," He starts with as his face stays serious. Slowly his eyebrows knit together and his face twists in mock confusion, "you're a girl?"

My face immediately falls and I look back at Clay, nostrils flared and eyes hard. I glare at him for a long moment and then shake my head stiffly.

"Why are you glarin' at me? He said it." Clay gives a small laugh and thrusts a thumb in Roque's direction.

"Don't mind them. I think you look nice in a **bright banana yellow** **dress**, Rose." Pooch pipes up with a small smirk playing on his lips. I grit my teeth and roll my eyes at him, crossing my arms over my chest.

The sound of a moped slowly fills the air, causing each of us to look down the cobble street. Cougar and Jensen sat shotgun on the back of the blue and yellow mopeds, two women driving them.

"Wow, and you say I'm tomboy..?" I ask softly, looking over at Clay with slightly wide eyes. These two women, beautifully yes, were also slightly...masculine. The one driving Jensen was far more masculine then the other, or at least I thought so. Clay gives a small laugh and looks down at the ground. I shake my head and look back at the mopeds as they stop by the curb to the street.

"Sorry, sorry! There was a party at the doll factory." Jensen apologizes as he climbs off the back of the blue moped, unlatching his hands from the woman driving. He grabs his jacket from the seat and looks back at us with a grin, "Carlito's birthday."

Cougar hops off of the yellow moped and kisses the woman who drove him. Jensen turns back around to the woman, who and driven him, and leans towards her, not realizing she was already lip locked with Cougar.

He turns back around and makes a small 'nah', giving us a shrug. We all let out small laughs at Jensen as Cougar finishes saying goodbye to the girls. Jensen walks up to me and leans against the tomb I sat on, tossing his jacket in between us.

My eyes latch on him, another laugh building up in my throat. Jensen crosses his arms over his chest and looks over at me. His eyebrows knit together as he gives a small unsure laugh.

"What?" He asks carefully as I try to hold my laughter in. I outstretch my arms and pout my lips, my body lightly shaking with laughter.

"Poor Jensen. Wanna hug?" I ask as a laugh escapes through my pouted lips. Jensen stares at me a moment and then pushes himself away from the tomb.

"Yeah. Actually that'd be great." Jensen quickly wraps his arms around me tightly. I laugh and wrap my arms around him as he sways us left and right playfully, sighing dramatically as he let me go finally. He leans back against the tomb again, fixing his glasses and looks around at the others, "So she wanted to meet in a cemetery? That's not like...foreboding at all."

Each of us stay quiet, my eyes locking onto the bright pink shirt with a large pink flower printed on it that Jensen was wearing. I slowly look up at at the others, silently questioning if I was really seeing what I thought I was.

"Am I the only one that sees his shirt?" Roque suddenly asks and then looks to the rest of us. I shake my head and look back at Jensen.

"Nah man." Pooch replies and stares at Jensen's shirt. Jensen looks around at each of us and then down at his shirt. He pulls it out a little so he can see it and then looks back up.

"Oh! It's my niece's soccer team." Jensen explains and points to the spelling on his shirt that said 'Go Petunias', "They're eight and under. I checked their scores online and I-"

Jensen's ramble stops at the looks the others were giving him. Each of them stared at him with blank expressions, almost as if they couldn't believe that Jensen was really talking about this. I personally thought it was cute, how much he cared about his niece, but then again I was a girl and I too had had a niece at one point.

"Real men wear pink!" I burst out with a smile and hop off the tomb, walking away from Jensen. I look over at Clay and give a laugh, seeing he knew I was purposefully changing the subject. I continue on passed Roque and soon I hear the others behind me. I can't help but look behind me at Jensen, who stood with his arms out and watching as the other walked away.

"What? They're in the playoffs!" He calls out and then scoffs, throwing his jacket on over his shirt, popping the collar. I give a small laugh and face forward again.

"What do we have on Aisha?" Clay asks as he walks passed me, leading us further into the graveyard.

"Aisha? That's a strange name." I comment and squint my eyes slightly to keep the glare of the sun down as I look behind me at Jensen, Cougar, and Pooch.

"So far besides a pant busting crush?" Jensen calls from the back as I spot a palm pilot in his hands, "Her company file is blank. CIA has a standing kill order on her as does the Hamas, ShenFeng, and pretty much everyone other then PETA wants this chick amscrayed."

Roque suddenly walks passed me and up beside Clay. In his hand he held one of his many knives, scraping it underneath his nails. He elbows Clay gently, looking around as we all continued to walk.

"Hey, you thinking clear on this?" He asks somewhat quietly and I try to walk a little closer to hear, "Cause every time you mess up it's because some woman."

"What? No way!" I suddenly laugh and look to Clay for an explanation. He supplies none and I can't help but narrow my eyes in suspicion, "You've actually messed up a mission because of a woman?"

Clay gives a shrug and continues walking, leaving me standing rooted to my spot. I shake my head, mouth agape in awe. I continue to watch him walk away, along with the others, and then suddenly spring to life again.

"That's so cliché!" I laugh again and jog to catch up to him. I hear Clay scoff at me and mumble some choice words under his breath, arguing that he it was all lies.

"No, no, no. It's definitely happened." Roque argues back, placing his knife back in its sheath on his belt. I look between Roque and Clay, occasionally looking down at my feet to make sure I wouldn't trip over anything.

"Name one time Roque." Clay's voice makes me look up again and I instantly feel my right shin collide with the corner of a tomb.

"Amber." Roque was quick to reply as everyone continued to follow behind him and Clay. I stop walking and pull my knee to my chest, holding my shin with both hands.

"Amber wasn't the problem. Amber's _husband_ was the problem." Clay clarifies as I shake my head and grit my teeth, silently cursing. I close my eyes, already knowing there was soon to be a bruise in place of my hands.

"Bet that felt nice." I give a small laugh at Jensen's comment and open my eyes, seeing him standing a few feet away from me, pocketing his palm pilot. I grit my teeth and give another, more annoyed laugh.

"Come a little closer. I'll show you just how nice it felt." I wobble a little as I stand on one foot, looking over at Jensen.

"Not gonna fall over are you?" He gives a laugh and shoves his hands into his jacket pockets. I look passed Jensen to the others, who had continued on walking, most likely not even realizing we weren't with them.

"If I do I'm taking you with me." I reply and let go of my shin, setting my foot back on the ground. I walk closer to Jensen, who was grinning at me, and shove his shoulder lightly as I walked passed.

"Amber's husband wasn't the one that shot you." Pooch calls over, making his way towards closer to the group.

"Oh, my God...She shot you?" I ask, suddenly jumping back into the conversation again. Clay looks back at me and gives a small shrug.

"She only shot me in the leg." Clay replies and looks forward again. I look to Jensen at my side a shake my head.

"ONLY the leg." I give a small snort of a laugh and look back at Clay, "As if that really makes it better."

"Well, what about Emma?" Jensen asks suddenly, removing his eyes from the ground. I look over at Cougar, asking him silently how many girls there had been. He makes a gesture with his hands, telling me 'many'.

"I never slept with Emma." Clay retorts shortly, pointing a finger at Jensen. He continues walking on, but we all follow closely at his heels.

"Because she put a bomb in your car." Roque snaps back.

"Yeah, I'll admit that did take some of the romance out of the relationship." I can hear the smirk in Clay's voice, making me roll my eyes.

"Some?" I ask softly with a smile, looking between Jensen and Cougar, "That's a complete no-no in my book."

"Yeah well, Clay's a romantic as you can obviously tell." Jensen replies, making me laugh as he places a hand over his heart. I shake my head for the umpteenth time today and continue walking, feeling not only my shin aching but also my abdomen. I don't think I've ever laughed this much in my entire life.

"Now this chick shows up and what's her name? Aisha?" Roque asks as Clay stops walking and turns to look at him, "Well she burns down a hotel."

Both of them have a stare off for a long moment, each of them trying to figure the other one out. I look between each of them, wondering who would cave first. I walk passed Cougar, who had sat down on a nearby tomb and then passed Pooch, standing off to the side from him.

"I'm clear Roque." Clay finally caves. Roque gives a shrug and nods his head, turning away from him. He sits down on a tomb in front of the one Cougar sat on, sighing heavily.

"Well, you'd better be," He starts and looks up from the ground. He nods his head at Clay, "cause I ain't getting killed by no girl."

"It's been a long time since anyone's called me a girl." The unfamiliar voice takes each of us by surprise. I look over passed Cougar to the woman who stood between two graves with her hands on her hips. She slowly walks closer to us, looking around at each of us.

My eyes locked on her, suspicion rising inside of me. She seemed normal, dressed normal despite the eyebrow piercing. She carried herself a little strange though; arrogant and composed. She was definitely not someone I would have trusted under any other circumstances, but then again. These weren't exactly normal circumstances.


	10. The Old Man and Aisha

Murphy's Law

"She put a bomb in your car?" The woman named Aisha asks as she walks closer to Clay. Clay looks down at her and gives a shrug as he thought over his reply.

"She was volatile." He admits and shoves his hands into his pant pockets. He nods his head at the strange woman and then looks over at Jensen, "Aisha, this is Jensen, Rhos, Pooch, Roque, and Cougar."

The air falls silent for a moment as she looks each of us over. Her eyes land on me and I stare right back, not trying to be subtle about my suspicious attitude towards her. I give her the once over and then she laughs a little, looking back to Clay.

"That's your names? Really?" Aisha laughs and looks from us to Clay once more.

"Is my name really that strange...?" I ask softly and look over at Jensen. He narrows his eyes and shakes his head slowly. I return my gaze to Aisha as I look her over again, slower this time. I was pretty good at reading people, but she was just a language I couldn't put together. One minute she would smile and the next her expression was harder then a slab of marble.

Aisha slowly pulls out a folder from the messenger bag she was carrying on one of her shoulders and tosses it onto the tomb beside Roque. She looks around at us and then points to the folder.

"Gentlemen, in ninety-seven hours Max will be in Miami." Aisha walks to the center of our little circle, slowly turning around to look at each of us, "He travels in an armored truck with at least thirty private security armed to the teeth."

"Damn..." I suddenly comment, blinking my eyes several times. I look over at Clay and shake my head as if to tell him we were in deep, "We would have a better shot at kidnapping the President."

"Yeah...you would, but good news for you is that I have the power to get you all back into the U.S., and fund this operation as you see fit." Aisha finishes and walks back to Clay's side, placing her hands on her hips. I cross my arms over my chest and narrow my eyes at her.

"What do you want in repayment?" I ask, earning Aisha's gaze. She studies me a moment and then slowly a smirk crosses her lips as she laces her hands in front of her.

"You get Max and we're squared." She answers and looks up at Clay. I shake my head a little and roll my eyes, knowing that she had Clay wrapped around her finger already.

"And," Roque begins while twirling a knife in his hand, "why should we believe you?"

"Because I'm the first person you've come across that admits you exist. Listen, you all can stay here in Bolivia and rot for all I care or you can go home and get revenge on the man that framed you." Her words were harsh and it struck a nerve within me.

I could only imagine what the others were feeling. They, after all, had others waiting for them; Pooch with his wife, Jensen and his niece. All I had left now was Clay.

"Colonel?" Jensen speaks up first, looking over at Clay. My eyes follow his and land on the conflicted expression on Clay's face. Clay looks around at each of us, stopping at me as his expression grew somber.

"Don't call me that..." He replies sternly. Even though he was wearing his sunglasses I could just tell that something was completely wrong inside of him. Something had changed, "We're not soldiers anymore."

I narrow my eyes at Clay's words. 'We're not soldiers anymore'? Clay was always and will always be a soldier. That was his purpose in life and now he was abandoning it? This just wasn't like him. I stare at Clay a moment longer until movement to my right catches my eye. I look over at Pooch who had stood up straighter.

"You realize if we do this we're waging war on the Central Intelligence Agency?" Pooch asks and looks over at Clay, slowly making his way to the rest of us. I watch as Cougar flips through the folder Aisha had set down beside Roque and then throws it back into it's place once more.

"They started it." He near growls out. His lips form a tight line as he fixes his hat. We all fall silent, none of us knowing what to say. Well, I knew what **I **wanted to say. I want to do this. I want to get revenge and bring this son of a bitch down. I want it more then anything. I didn't care how probable it would be to complete it. I just wanted to try. I felt I needed to.

"Well, alright. Meet me here tomorrow morning then." Aisha hands a card slyly to Clay and walks away, the way she had come. Clay looks over the card and then pockets it, keeping his hands in his pant pockets.

"Well that was slightly more then unpleasant." I comment and look around at the others. I place a hand on my stomach and give a small smile at the others, "Anyone else hungry?"

"Starved." Jensen pipes up, rubbing his stomach in return. I laugh and start walking the way we had all come, the others following behind. I hear footsteps close behind me and also a stare slowly burning a hole in my back.

I look over my shoulder at Clay. His look never faltered as he stared right back at me from behind his sunglasses. I could tell he had something he wanted to say to me and it wasn't just because of the guilty look he was portraying either. I could also tell I wasn't going to like what is was he had to say to me.

We come to the curb where we had started off at the beginning of this 'meeting'. I stop walking by the tomb I had sat on earlier and try to pull my mind from Clay, thinking of where a good place to eat would. The others walk passed me, Jensen and Cougar first.

I take a deep breath and lick my lips when Clay didn't walk behind the others. Out of the corner of my eyes I could see him standing a few feet from me, hands in his pockets, and just watching me carefully as he tried to decide how he would start the conversation he knew I didn't want to have.

"Rhos," Clay starts softly and I look over at him. I give an understanding smile and lace my hands together in my lap, "...you don't have to do this."

"Do what?" I laugh though I knew exactly what. I run a hand through my hair, "Pay for dinner? Really Clay, I don't mind seeing as I'm the one with the highest wage here. Don't worry about it."

"That's not what I'm talking about." Clay's voice goes stern and slowly my smile slips from my face. I nod my head a little and look down at my feet.

"I know what you meant." I reply slowly and knit my eyebrows together, "i just don't understand why you're saying it."

Clay runs a hand over his mouth, a nervous habit I had seen him developing the last few weeks. I narrow my eyes at him as a feeling of anxiousness suddenly washes over me. I had no inclination of what he was about to say to me, but I could just feel in my bones that I wasn't going to like it. Not one little bit.

"You're not just telling me I don't have to go...are you?" I ask a little louder and more forceful.

"No." He replies simply as I spot the others in my peripheral vision stop walking and turn back to look at us. I ignore them and keep my eyes glued to Clay as he runs a hand over his mouth again, "There's no _reason_ for you to be coming with us."

Clay removes his sunglasses, seeming to struggle with forming his words. My mind goes completely blank at his words.

"I'm sorry. What was that?" I ask with a sarcastic laugh and close my eyes. I knit my eyebrows together as I try to make the gears in my brain start working again from the stall. This was not the reply I was expecting. I didn't understand it. **I **didn't have a reason? Me? I had more of a reason then him, didn't I?

I open my eyes and stare up at Clay hard. Clay looks back down at me and says nothing, just stares at me blankly. I shake my head at him and lick my lips again.

"That's not the real reason." I speak up after another moment. I shake my head again and hop off of the tomb, staring up at the sky, "It can't be. You would never say something like that to me. It's something else. It's gotta be."

"Well it's not." Clay replies as I take to pacing. I turn around and stare at him with my hands on my hips, bitting my bottom lip, and beginning to feel tears prickle at my eyes.

"Yes it is!" I snap back and run a hand through my hair again, taking to pacing once more, "You know I have every reason to go after the son of a bitch. You know that I've been searching for him for months. You wouldn't just suddenly hold him out in front of me and then tell me I can't have him!"

I take a deep breath and rub the bridge of my nose. I shake my head again and look back at Clay.

"So what is the real reason?" I ask, desperately wanting to know what was going on inside his head.

"I don't **want** you going with us." He finally admits and I could swear time stopped with how silent it had just become. Clay looks back at the others and then down at me again. He takes a deep breath and lowers his voice, "You're completely emotionally compromised. Just look at yourself now. You're shaking."

I look down at my clenched fists and realize he was right. I had known this for a while. I was too emotionally involved, but who wouldn't be? I shake my head anyways and look back at him. I **had **to go with them. I had to get Max.

"I can take care of myself. You know me, Clay." I bring my tone down and bite my tongue to keep from crying. My vision had begun to blur with unshed tears and I willed them with all my might to disperse.

"Yeah, I do know you, Rhoswen." Clay nods his head and lays a hand on my shoulder. He leans closer and gently kisses my forehead. He gives a small laugh and then takes a deep breath, "and I know I don't need you."

My mind goes completely blank with the sudden blow. It was like I had been hit in the face and now I was numb and I couldn't pull a rational thought into my head. I stare ahead of myself as tears fall down my cheeks. I didn't know what to feel or how to respond.

"Go home..." Clay slowly pulls away from me and lets his hand slide from my shoulder. He looks at me once more, but I don't look back. I can't. My eyes are permanently glued to the scene ahead of me as my mind slowly begins to float back.

"Clay." I speak up as he starts walking down the cobble street. I turn around to watch him and step off the curb, "Clay! CLAY!"

"Clay, man, you're doin' this now?" I hear Pooch's soft voice ask from beside Clay, "What're you thinking?"

"I'm thinking I'm doing what I have to." Clay replies and then starts walking again.

"Clay please!" I feel another tear roll down my cheek. I quickly wipe it away and take a deep breath, trying to compose myself. As much as he had just hurt me the way I was reacting was only proving him right. It wasn't helping my cause.

"Clay, I **can't **go home!" I yell out at the top of my lungs. I feel another tear roll down my cheek and I quickly wipe it away again, "I have** no **home to go back to! Max stole it from me!**"**

Clay stands rooted to his spot. The others look from me to him and then back, unsure of what was going to happen.

"Just listen to what she has to say." Roque buts in, looking back at me with a curious look. He turns and looks back at Clay, who stares at him hard, "All you have to do is listen to her. You can handle that, right?"

Roque pats him on the back of the shoulder and then gives a gutsy laugh, looking back at me. I had never really liked Roque, but I was grateful for him sticking up for me. Even if it was to satisfy his own needs.

Clay slowly shakes his head and looks up at the sky. He turns back to look at me, hands in his pockets.

"So what are you gonna do? Huh? Steal it back? You rescue people. You can't kill and that's what you're gonna have to be able to do. Are you ready for that?" Clay retorts, his voice hard and will with sarcasm, "You really ready to steal your life back even if it means stealing life from others?"

I fall quiet and look at the others around him. I notice some of them look back at me again, waiting to see my reply.

"What the hell...?" I whisper to myself as I look from one person to the next, landing lastly on Clay. Something felt strange about the situation I was in. At first this felt as if Clay was just telling me I couldn't go, but now...now it felt like he was...testing me?

I look to Roque, who stood playing with one of his knives again and had a smug grin on his face. Then to Pooch , who had his arms crossed over his chest and one hand covering his mouth as he looked from me to Clay. My eyes move to Cougar, who gave me a small smile as he jutted his thumbs through his belt loops. I move my gaze to Jensen, who stands with his arms in his jacket pockets. He nods his head at Clay and then gives me a quick wink.

I look back at Clay and shake my head. I feel my nostrils flare and my blood boil as I realize what had just happened. I had fallen right into it.

"First I'm going to kill you." I start and point a finger at Clay, "And then I'm going to kill Max, you son of a bitch. You have some nerve trapping me like this, Clay. Trying to get me to back out because I might have to actually kill someone. I've killed before, you asshole."

Clay gives a small laugh and takes a quick look down at the ground. He knew he was caught and that just made me even angrier. He looks back up at me and shakes his head.

"You're gonna get yourself killed if you come with us." Clay calls back, pointing a finger at me. I grit my teeth and give him a hard stare. That was really the best he could come up with?

"And you think I'm okay with you getting killed?" I ask and stare back at him. I cross my arms over my chest and walk a little closer to him and the guys.

"You and you're brother were the closest thing to a family I ever had." Clay stops and bobs his head a little, "Apart from these guys. But they don't really count."

I roll my eyes and take a deep breath while he shakes his head and looks down at the ground.

"Your parents treated me like a son. Now, what kind of a kid would I be if I didn't look after their only daughter? What kind of an older brother would I be if I didn't try and get you out of this?" Clay asks rhetorically and looks back at me. I give him a blank stare and then look off to the side, shaking my head. He was acting just like Liam if he had been here. Liam always tried to stop me from doing things that could 'potentially' get me hurt or, of course, killed.

"You know," I start and move a little closer to stand in front of him, "this is the kind of crap I'd expect from Liam, not you. I liked you more when you just let me do what I want and be there to help me fix my mistakes. That's kind of why I liked you more Liam."

Clay gives a laugh and then smirks down at me. It was a winning smirk that only he could portray as cockily as if he had just one some great consolation prize. I shake my head at him and inwardly curse him.

"How about that dinner now?" He asks and turns away from me, walking down the cobble street. I look up at the sky and grit my teeth.

"I swear to God I'm going to kill him one of these days." I mumble and then look to the others. I motion for them to follow after Clay, my stomach getting the best of me. I walk in between Jensen and Cougar, arms still crossed over my chest, "Thank you Jensen."

"What for?" He asks and looks down at me. I look up at him and give a small smile.

"If you hadn't of winked I probably never would have gotten that he was testing me." I admit and walk a little faster to be behind Clay. I place my hands on his shoulders and then hop up. Clay catches my legs as i wrap my arms around his neck.

"I know I'm like an older brother, but aren't we a little old to still be doing piggy backs?" Clay asks and bounces me to get a better grip on me. I give a laugh and shake my head as I feel my feet sway forwards and backwards as he walks.

"I'm not, but you sure as hell are old man." I laugh again as Clay suddenly pinches my leg. I smack him as we, well they, continue to walk into town.


	11. Coffins Anyone?

What now! Three updates today. Booya! I'm amazing. I'll try and crank out a few more chapters to The Losers this week for you all. Peace and Love!

* * *

**Murphy's Law**

_~Coffins Anyone?~_

I take a deep breath, pulling in the scent of clean linen and wood as I try to take my mind off of where I was. I quickly fix the ear bud in my left ear and then the ear piece in my right. My hands lay over my stomach, on top of the iPod Jensen had given me at the start of today. My fingers tapped rhythmically to the beat of Black Betty by ZZ Top as it softly rang through the ear bud. I tried desperately to stop thinking about where I now laid since I would have a panic attack if I thought about it any more.

This morning Cougar had woken Jensen and I up at the butt crack of dawn. Then we had all met up at Pooch's auto shop to go over the plan once more. Roque asked Clay again if we could really trust this woman, Aisha, or if the fact that she had a pair of breasts and an attitude was getting the better of him. Then we headed out to the address Aisha had written on the back of the little card Clay had.

The destination was a warehouse in Santa Cruz, a good three hours from the town we had been in. We had all gone inside where we were greeted with the sight of six coffins laid out neatly in two rows. At first I thought we had been dragged into some crappy version of the Twilight Zone, but soon I realized that it was no joke.

I had completely freaked out when I put together the plan Aisha had. Aisha told us we had to get into the coffins and stay there till we got to the Nogales at the US/Mexican border. Now, I'm a little claustrophobic and being locked inside a coffin for several hours was not ideal to me.

I give a small laugh at the memory of me realizing what the coffins were for. I had acted like an idiot, but I had good cause.

_"That's it." I suddenly speak up and shake my head rapidly. The others look over at me with confused and also amused looks, "I'm done. Over. End of story."_

_"You can't be serious." Clay looks back at me and gives a small laugh. I knew he genuinely found the idea of me being able to jump off cliffs and take being shot at, but not being able to stand being in a coffin for a couple of hours funny. __I just didn't care if he meant to be a pain in my ass or not, though I'm pretty sure he was trying. I glare back at him and then shake my head again, pointing at the coffins._

_"Not fucking happening!" I shout and then look over at Aisha with the same glare I had given Clay. It was her twisted idea after all. I point a finger at her and shake my head, "First a cemetery and now coffins! You're fucking insane lady!"_

_Aisha gives a small shrug as if she accepted it and then looks over at Clay. I look around at the guys and then storm over to the warehouse doors. Clay's laughter follows me the entire way. I stand outside the door, off to the side, and look out at the other warehouses spread around. I bend one of my legs and place my foot on the wall behind me, leaning back._

_There was no way I was getting into a coffin. Not gonna happen. Wouldn't that like jinx us or something? Like walking under a ladder or crossing paths with a black cat?_

_"You alright?" Jensen pops his head out from the warehouse and looks over at me as his glasses slowly begin to shade. I sigh and slowly shake my head, not in reply to his answer, but just in general._

_"This feels like the goddamn Twilight Zone." I mumble and shake my head again. I lean my head back against the wall and look over at Jensen, who had walked out from the door, "Clay can really pick 'em."_

_"He picked you, didn't he?" Jensen laughs and shoves his hands into his jacket pockets, looking down at his feet. __I laugh along with him and nod my head. I close my eyes and turn my face to the sky. I listen to Jensen as he walks closer to me and leans against he wall beside me._

_"I'm a little claustrophobic." I admit softly and open my eyes. I roll my head on the wall and look up at him, "And coffins don't exactly scream joy for me these days."_

_"And they did at some point...?" Jensen asks slowly as his eyebrows knit together. He lifts a clenched hand and pretends to knock on my forehead, "Are we sure you're alright up there?"_

_"Shut up." I laugh and swat his hand away, "You're turning into Clay."_

_"Maybe, but I'm much cuter and more cuddly." Jensen replies and leans back against the wall again, hands in his pockets once more. I laugh and nod my head in agreement._

_"Very true." I smile a moment longer and then let it go, knowing that there was no way I was getting out of riding in a coffin, "I suppose I have to face the music."_

_"What?" Jensen asks and looks down at me. I shake my head and give another smile. He hadn't gotten my joke and that was fine. He too was a blond after all._

_"Nothing. Let's go back inside." I push myself off from the wall and move passed him._

_"Hey wait." Jensen grabs my hand, making me stop abruptly. I look back at him and then at the hold he had on my hand. I feel my heart speed up at the gentle touch as Jensen looks down at our hands and then quickly lets go as if he had offended me, "Sorry."_

_"It's fine. What did you want?" I ask, closing my eyes a moment. I take a slow breath and open my eyes again. Jensen pulls out a black iPod Classic from his jacket pocket. Wrapped around the iPod was a set of ear bud headphones. He reaches into his other jacket pocket and pulls out an ear piece, handing it and everything else to me._

_"This is why I came out in the first place." He gives a small smile and shoves his hands back into his pockets again, a nervous habit I had become aware to the last several days, "The iPod is so you can listen to music...obviously that's what it's for...um...the ear piece is so we can talk during the ride. I mean if you want to. You don't have to. You'll probably just want to just listen to music, but if you wanted to we could talk. I don't know if there's anything on the iPod you'll like, but it's got the Stones, some Chicago, The Rasmus, a couple of others..."_

_I look over the iPod and try to hold my smile back. If I let it go it would be more like a wide spread grin. Jensen was so nervous and flustered that it was just too cute for me not to want to grin, but if I did then he would be more nervous. A lot of guys I met weren't like him. They were like Clay and Roque and they never acted so sweetly._

_"Thank you Jensen." I give a small laugh and bite my bottom lip. It felt like I was back in high school and the boy I liked had just acknowledged my presence for the first time, "Let's go back inside."_

_I give him another smile and then lick my lips, trying not to grin or laugh. I walk through the doors of the warehouse with Jensen at my heels._

"Rose?" I snap back to reality at the call from the ear piece in my right ear. I blink a few times and sort of look around the dark coffin I laid in, searching for the source of the voice. I shake my head a little and close my eyes again, scolding myself for being so stupid.

"What was that Jensen?" I reply and then sigh softly, ZZ Top having been replaced by CCR.

"What are you listening to?" He asks again. I listen to the song for a moment and then give a small laugh.

"Bad Moon Rising." I reply and then give another small laugh.

_I see the bad moon rising. I see trouble on the way. I see earthquakes of lightnin'. I see bad times today._

"Don't go around tonight. Well, it's bound to take your life. There's a bad moon on the rise." I sing along softly. I hear Jensen sigh heavily and dramatically.

"Wow, this week's full of bad omens." He gives a small shaky laugh and then quiets. I roll my eyes beneath their lids and decide to change the song.

"How about Jungle Love?" I ask as I flip through his list of songs.

"Better." He laughs. I take the unused ear bud and set it on the pillow by my right ear so he could hear the song through the ear piece.

_I met you on somebody's island. __You thought you had known me before._

"So..." Jensen starts up after a moment. I could tell that he was bored and of course at the moment I was the only one he could talk to beside himself.

"So." I repeat with a knowing smile.

"You come here often?" I laugh aloud at the stupid rhetorical question and shake my head. I lick my lips and rearrange myself, bumping my elbows on the sides of the coffin.

"Do you?" I ask back.

"I asked you first."

_You probably wouldn't remember. I probably couldn't forget. Jungle love in the surf in the pouring rain. Everything's better when wet._ "So true." I sigh softly with a smile at all the memories I had of being wet and having fun. "How so?" I laugh at the honest curiosity in Jensen's voice. "Have you ever taken a walk in the pouring rain? Or just kissed someone in it?" I ask and open my eyes to stare at the white cloth draped over dark wood above me, "There's just something magical about being out in the rain." "You've actually kissed someone in the pouring rain?" Jensen gives a snort of a laugh. Something in his voice didn't sound right. "Jealous Jake?" I ask playfully. Jungle Love ends and moves on to Down Under by Men At Work. I listen to Jensen as he scoffs. "No. It sounds kind of cliché is all." He replies testily. I roll my eyes and smile. "Have **you** ever kissed anyone in the rain?" I ask and close my eyes to try and picture a rainfall. My question is returned with dead silence, confirming what I had thought, "You've never kissed anyone in the rain." "No...no I haven't." He replies after another moment. I try and stifle the laugh building up in my throat. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. The air fell silent between us, apart from the music, and I was slowly becoming more aware that I was in a confined little wooden box. "You have a girl waiting for you in the States Jensen?" I ask shakily as my hands began to sweat. My heart starts to speed up in reply to the panic attack that was starting. "Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?" He asks cockily and I can only picture the smirk he has on his face. I laugh in reply to his question. "Touché, but no. It's sheer panic." I take deep breath to calm myself and then clear my voice, "I'm going to kill Aisha for this." "Max, Clay, and now Aisha? Why are all the girls I met so bad ass?" I laugh at his comment and lick my lips. My smile falters and slowly I feel my mind drift off to another subject. "I never used to be." I admit softly and open my eyes to stare at the white cloth, "You know, I never wanted to be in the army." "What did you want to do?" Jensen asks, his voice seeming taken aback. "Don't laugh okay?" I ask, already regretting what I was about to tell him. I had never told anyone except Clay; not my parents, Liam, no one. "I'm sorry. I just can't promise that." Jensen answers playfully and I give a small smile. I take a deep breath to prepare myself for what I was about to tell him. "I wanted...to open my own bakery." I scrunch my face up as I awaited Jensen's laughter. A moment goes by and all there is is dead air and music. "I could see that." Jensen replies after another moment. I open my eyes again and narrow them with a smile. "Really?" I ask in surprise. "No not really." Jensen replies through a sigh. I could tell he was trying to hold back a laugh, "I can't picture you being patient enough to bake anything." "I'm patient enough to handle you, aren't I?" I retort and lace my hands over the iPod. "This is true." Jensen admits softly. I close my eyes for the last time, intent on trying to fall asleep, "A few more hours and Max is as good as gone. Then life can return to normal and you can go off and play with cookie cutters." The air falls silent between us again. The song on the iPod changes again, turning into Cats in the Cradle. My mind begins to reel on the thought of getting Max and actually being able to do what I wanted to once this was all over. "Jensen?" I ask softly after a moment. "Yeah?" He asks back. "What **do** you think'll happen after we get Max?" I ask as I start to chew on the inside of my bottom lip, feeling awkward. "Well, we all have things to go back to; people to go back to." Jensen replies as if it was the simplest thing in the world, but he had missed my meaning all together. "So, you think everyone will go their own way." I think aloud as I quieted the music. "Well...yeah." Jensen replies with a small laugh, "Pooch has a wife and will soon be a dad so he'll go and be with them. I have my sister and niece. Cougar probably has some girl waiting for him and the same with Roque. Clay has the army to get back to and you have your bakery to open up." His answer confirmed my thoughts. I hadn't had a second to think about what would happen after we got Max, but now...now I wasn't so sure if I wanted him dead. If we got him everyone would go their own way. I would be...I'd be alone all over again. "Rose?" Jensen asks softly through the ear piece. "Yeah Jensen?" I reply, not wanting to talk anymore. I had really gotten to like these guys and they too would soon be gone. "Do you still live in New York?" "Yeah. Why?" I ask and close my eyes. "Because I'm gonna have to taste test everything you make before you try and sell it. Can't have you poisoning innocent people." Jensen gives a laugh and I can't help but laugh along with him. "I won't poison them. I'll just poison you." I laugh again. "See? There you go again with the hostility. I really need to find a nice, down to earth girl that doesn't want to kill everyone." I give a loud laugh and turn on my side the best I could within the coffin. "Wake me when we get there." I yawn and curl myself into a small ball, my knees pushing against the side of the wall to the coffin. "Sir, yes sir." "Shut up Jensen." I reply as I let out another yawn, feeling myself drift away.


	12. We Have A Problem

**Murphy's Law**

_~We Have A Problem~_

-Clay's POV-

I hear a knock on the top of the casket I lay in and push open the top to see blaring lights up above me. I rub my eyes and then sit up, looking around the barren warehouse I was in. The others were already up and stretching, talking softly amongst each other. I hop out of my casket and stretch, looking over at Aisha, who stood a few feet away and wearing a suit.

"Welcome back to the world of the living." Aisha smiles at us as I pull my shirt out from being tucked in my pants. I look around at the others again. I wanted to make sure they were all alright. Last thing we needed was someone hurt and unable to help in the mission at hand. They all looked alright, yawning and trying to keep themselves awake. I give a small huff of a laugh and shake my head, looking back at Aisha.

"So Clay," Aisha starts, a smirk forming on her face as she pockets the box cutter she had used to unlatch the ties around the coffins, "What do you plan on doing first?"

I laugh at the question and run a hand over my face, scratching the stubble on my chin. There were a lot of things I wanted to do. But in what order? I laugh again and look back at her, letting my hand drop from my face.

"I'm going bird hunting." I reply and shove my hands into my pockets. Aisha nods her head and crosses her arms over her chest, "So how do we get out of here?"

"Well, there's a..." Aisha's voice drones off as I listen to another conversation coming from behind me where the guys were.

"Wait a minute. Coug, where's Rose?" Jensen's soft question pulls me completely away from my conversation with Aisha. I keep my eyes on her, but my ears were listening in to Cougar and Jensen as they continued.

"No se." Cougar replies in a low voice, "There are six coffins though."

I take a quick look behind me at the two and see them both stare at the sixth coffin that was unopened at the back of my their row. I see Cougar and Jensen look back at each other, giving one another the same confused stare. Cougar gives a small shrug to Jensen's unasked question.

I look back at Aisha and nod my head at her, confirming that I had heard everything she had just said. I hear Jensen walk towards the coffin and open it, then go quiet. No laugh, no happy greeting, nothing, just silence.

Slowly I look back at him, the quiet unusual for him. I see the others were talking amongst themselves and look behind them to Jensen, seeing his back turned to me. Something in the coffin had caught his undivided attention. That was a first.

"Jensen, is she still asleep?" I call out to him, giving a small laugh. It wouldn't surprise me if she was. Jensen quickly lifts his head, staring out across the warehouse stiffly. I narrow my eyes at his behavior and turn around fully to face him, "What is it?"

Jensen whips his head around to look at me as he slowly closes the coffin. He turns around and looks from me to the others, who had become interested in the conversation.

"What is it?" I ask again, feeling annoyance beginning. Jensen swallows hard and then gives a small cough, fist in front of his closed lips.

"Uh..." He starts and lets his fist fall, looking down at the ground for a moment. His eyebrows knit together in confusion of how to word his next phrase. He looks back up, same expression on his face, "We have a problem."

"What're you talking about?" Roque asks in bewilderment. Jensen looks over at him a moment, then to me, opening and closing his mouth to speak, but nothing coming out.

"Is Rhos okay?" I asks slowly, getting the feeling that something was seriously wrong.

"Okay, see that's the thing." Jensen starts in a normal voice, acting a little more like himself.

"No." I whisper and jog towards Rhoswen's coffin.

"She's not," Jensen starts, but I push him away and rip open the coffin, my eyes going wide at what I see, "...in there."

In the coffin laid an elderly man with peppered hair, eyes closed, and hands lying neatly on his stomach. This definitely wasn't Rhoswen. I feel my breathing get deeper as the situation slowly set in on me. She wasn't in the coffin. So where was she?

"Where is she?" I snap suddenly, feeling anger building up inside of me. I was mostly angry at myself, but Aisha had been the one who had made the promise. She had been the one I had trusted with, not only my life, but with the lives of my team, with Rhoswen's life. This was a disaster. I turn around from the coffin, the others quickly coming over to look inside of it, and stare at Aisha with heated eyes, "Where the fuck is she!"

I couldn't believe it. How could this have happened? How could **I **have let this happen? I try and conceal my emotions, staring at Aisha.

"You said we would all get here; _together_. So where is she, Aisha?" I ask again, my temper rising. Aisha's expression turns spiteful, angry about what I was insinuating.

"You actually believe I would purposely loose her? Or have her shipped somewhere else?" Aisha snaps and takes to shaking her head for lack of anything better to do.

"I don't know because I don't know you!" I yell roughly. I was loosing control of myself. This was the worst thing that could have happened. Rhos had said she didn't want to get into a coffin and now she might not get out.

"Clay, I don't know where she is. I gave specific orders for you all to be brought to the U.S. Customs: Shipping and Receiving. **All of you; together.** That's the arrangement **I **made. If she's not here, then I don't know where the hell she is."

I stare at her a moment longer and then look down at the ground, hands on my hips. I try to think of how this could have possibly happen and where she could possibly be. The most logical answer was that she was in some other warehouse on the site. That didn't mean that she was though. I kick the stand the coffin behind me was on and curse, unsure of what to do.

"What're we gonna do Colonel?" Roque asks, drawing my attention to him. I stare at him a moment, taking notice to the look of annoyance in his expression. I knew he didn't care about Rhoswen very much and I wasn't exactly sure why, but right now that didn't matter. What mattered was that Rhoswen was missing and was in a coffin that was probably still locked and tied shut.

"We find her." Jensen's voice breaks me from my thoughts and forces me to look around at the group. All eyes were on him, including my own. I watch him carefully with a steady eye. I knew he, Cougar, and Rhoswen had grown close the last couple of weeks. They were inseparable. I also knew that his answer was the one I should have been telling them, "We have to find her."

"And how do you suppose we do that, Jensen?" Roque asks sneeringly, turning to look at Jensen. Jensen gives a shrug and then shakes his head, unable to think of an answer.

"We split up and look." He replies after another moment.

"Split up and look." Roque repeats Jensen's answer and nods his head, "And if she's not here? Are we gonna go and look somewhere else?"

"Yes!"

I stop paying attention to the others. All I could think about at the moment was how Rhoswen must be feeling; frightened, panicked, forgotten...All the same feelings as the last time something similar had happened. I knew that where ever she was, the memory was now fresh in her mind and making things worse. This was the second time she had been put into a coffin because of Max.

"We can't do that." Aisha speaks up, pulling everyone's eyes to her. I look over at her, wondering what I had missed of the conversation. Aisha shakes her head and looks at each of us, "We can't."

"Why not?" Jensen retorts curtly.

"It'll take too long to search every square inch here and by then Max will be out of Miami." Aisha stares at Jensen and crosses her arms over her chest again.

"Oh right, Max. Yeah that makes it perfectly alright then to leave her behind **IN A COFFIN!**" Jensen raises his voice at the end to make a point to her and everyone else in the warehouse.

"I'm sorry. I really am, but right now you have your side of the deal to keep." Aisha snaps, her lips pulled tight against her teeth.

"You didn't keep up your end. Why should we?" Pooch asks, breaking into the argument. Jensen's eyebrows raise as he nods his head, obviously unable to have anything else to say and also in agreement with Pooch.

"Look, there's a car waiting outside for us that will take us to Miami where Max will be. I will call in a search party to look for her and when they find her they'll send her straight to us. I promise." Aisha argues back, trying to win them over. I shake my head at her attempt and at the situation. I turn away from her and look back at the elderly man in the coffin Rhos was supposed to be in.

"How can we trust you? You already lost her once." Cougar counters in a low voice, staring Aisha down with his dark eyes that were shaded by the brim of his hat. It was easy to tell he was upset despite his being so calm.

"I promised to get you back into the States and I did." She retorts, her face going sour.

"Yeah, you promised **all of us** would get here and as far as we know she's back in Bolivia still." Pooch responds before anyone else.

"For all you know she left without you all and is on her way to Miami right now to kill Max." Aisha snaps back, staring at Pooch for a long moment. The others watch the two face off in some kind of silent battle, no one knowing what to say.

"What if she is here somewhere?" Jensen breaks their battle, drawing their eyes to him, "She could be here in one of the other warehouses. We can't just leave without her."

"Why not?" Roque asks suddenly with a nonchalant tone as he plays with the point of a knife he held. He scraps a thumb over it to see if it were sharp and then looks to Jensen, "Knowing Rhoswen, where ever she may have been, is probably on her way to Max right now. If she is somewhere here though don't you think she'd want us to go and kill the son of a bitch instead of missing our chance and letting him go?"

The warehouse falls silent again as everyone looks around at each other. Roque had a good point. Rhoswen could be on her way to Miami to get Max and if she wasn't she probably would want us to go get him. She wouldn't want to miss the only chance of bringing him down. She wants him dead more then any of us.

"How would you know what she'd want?" Jensen asks bothered by Roque assuming, "You don't know her. You don't know the first thing about her."

"**I** don't know her?" Roque asks rhetorically as his eyes narrow, "Do you? I mean do you **really** know her, Jensen?"

"More then you do!"

"What's to know? She's a killer like the rest of us!" Roque yells, anger evident on his face.

"She saves people!" Jensen argues back. Roque takes a small step towards Jensen while waving his knife in Jensen's direction.

"You and your little high school crush on her is really starting to get on my nerves." Roque stops two feet before Jensen and stares down at him. Roque's lips form a thin line as he raises the knife up to Jensen's cheek, grazing the blade against his skin, "Why don't you just be a good boy and shut up before I make you."

"Roque. Man leave him alone." Pooch speaks up. Roque lowers the knife from Jensen and points it back at Pooch, his eyes never leaving Jensen.

"You shut up too, Pooch." He snarls and then takes a step back from Jensen.

"Man, he's right. We can't just leave her here." Pooch buts in, narrowing his eyes at Roque.

"Why? We don't owe her anything!" Roque snaps back at him, but I stop listening. I had really stopped listening a while ago, but could hear ever bit of the conversation. I was too lost in my thoughts about Rhoswen, about the last time, to even care about what my team was doing.

"Clay...Clay...!" I snap out of my trance and look over at Aisha, who had called to me. She was pointing at something behind me, "Are you going to stop them? Because I think someone's going to get killed if you don't."

I look in the direction she was pointing and see Roque and Cougar now sizing each other up. They were standing before each other, staring at each other with hard and narrowed eyes, both having a look to kill.

"Come on. Try something. Try." Roque snarls and gives Cougar a small shove, knife still in his hand. Pooch and Jensen both yell something out at the two while Cougar retorts to Roque's taunting in Spanish, everyone's words becoming muddled together.

"Knock it off!" I call out to them suddenly and run a hand over my mouth in exasperation and irritation. The others seem to either not hear me or ignore me and continue to argue amongst themselves, "Hey! I said knock it off!"

The others stop and look over at me. They were all tired and now angry too. We couldn't work this way. We'd get ourselves killed or just kill each other.

"Good. Now that I have your attention. I don't care what any of you think about the situation." I snap, looking from one to another. I really had no idea what I was going to say. I had no idea what to do. Do we go after Max and leave her to where ever she was? Or stay, try and find her, and miss Max? I didn't know which was the worst of the two evils.

"Ow!" Jensen suddenly yells and cups a hand over his right ear. Something clear drops from his ear and dangles from his hip. He quickly picks it back up and places it in his ear, "Rose? Rose is that you? Can you hear me?"

We all watch Jensen as he holds the ear piece in his ear. He looks over at me and keeps quiet, listening.

"Where are you? Are you alright?" Jensen stops again, "Rose I'm with the others. You got brought somewhere else. Do you know where?"

Suddenly his hand is back on his ear again, his expression showing his pain.

"What is she saying?" I ask and move closer.

"She says she's still in the coffin." Jensen replies and then goes quiet, listening, "It sounds like she's banging on it. Hard too. It must still be locked and tied."

"Oxígeno!" Cougar's voice causes everyone to look at him. He looks around at us and then places a hand on his neck. "Oxígeno!"

I realize what he means about the oxygen and suddenly run passed them all to the warehouse doors, getting ready to open them.

"Clay!" Aisha calls out to me, "We don't have time!"

"Rhoswen doesn't have time! Her oxygen is running out!" I yell back and look at her a moment then at the others, "Spread out and find her!"

I open the warehouse doors and run out and into the warehouse next door.


	13. Truth Beneath The Rose

Here's an update. I changed when her brother and his family died. So now instead of the story taking place six months after it all it's now two years. This plays a role with everything in the next chapters. **SO READ THIS MESSAGE!** Thank you!

* * *

**Murphy's Law**

_~Truth Beneath The Rose~_

~Rhoswen's POV~

I feel myself fall and hit something hard, scaring me awake. I slowly open my eyes and am greeted with darkness. I roll over onto my back and stare up at the faint sight of the cloth draped over the coffin door. Finally we had landed.

I stretch my legs out and lay my hands over my stomach. A few moments go by and I slowly feel as though the walls were closing in on me. I knock gently on the coffin door above me, hoping that one of the guys were close by. I get nothing back. I knock again, a little louder this time, but get the same silent response.

Maybe I was the first one to touch ground? Last one on first one off. Yeah that was it. I was the first off the plane. All I have to do is just wait. Soon one of them would come and get me.

So I wait patiently. I start to hum happy tunes to myself while I try to keep my breathing steady. I close my eyes and bounce my foot the best I can to the beat. I tap my fingers on the back of my other hand, feeling anxious. I had to keep my mind off of where I was. I had to.

Fifteen minutes creep by as my anxiety turns into fear. I take several deep breaths and tell myself that they were on their way right now to let me out. They had to be. They couldn't just leave me in this coffin.

"Hey, you guys?" I call out from the darkness of the coffin, but no response. So I try a little louder, thinking it may have been too muffled, "Clay! You guys!"

I wait a moment, listening intently, but once again there was no response. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. I feel my hands tingle and start to become clammy, shaking slightly. I squeeze my eyes shut and clench my hands.

"It's okay. I'm okay." I tell myself and then swallow hard. I wanted to believe my words, but my fear was getting the better of me. A soft noise catches my attention. I try and force myself to listen, trying to make out what it was.

My eyes suddenly snap open stare at the door of the coffin. It couldn't be what it sounded like. It just couldn't be happening again. My mind reels, the noise continuing, and bringing me back to the last time I had been in a coffin. It had only been two years ago... The noise comes again; dirt tapping gently against the wood, and I break from my thoughts long enough to draw in a quick breath of terror.

"You guys! This isn't funny anymore! Get me out!" I scream suddenly and bang on the coffin door again. I try to kick, finding myself snug in the coffin. My breathing was becoming unsteady as I began to feel sheer panic build up inside of me, "Get me the Hell out of here!"

It had only been a little while since I had been dropped in where ever I was, but it felt like three hours. No one had come to get me yet and it felt like no one ever was. I was terrified, panicked, and beginning to feel helpless, "CLAY! JENSEN! COUGAR! SOMEONE HELP ME!"

_"Ow!" _A voice suddenly says. It had come from right beside me, but that wasn't possible. Just like the sound I had been hearing wasn't possible. It was all in my head. It had to be.

"HELP! ANYONE! HELP ME! PLEASE!" I continue to scream at the top of my lungs and bang on the coffin door.

_"Rose? Rose is that you?"_ I stop banging, recognizing the voice this time. It wasn't just in my head like the noise was, _"__Can you hear me?"_

"Jensen! Jensen help me!" I hit the coffin door again, hoping to help lead him to where I was.

_"Where are you? Are you alright?" _He asks, his voice seeming to be right beside me.

"I'm in the coffin still." I reply, a sob making it's way out through my voice. I was trying to hold myself together, but hearing the worry in his tone and seeing the situation I was in canceled any and all control I had. I hit the door again lighter, feeling like this was a bad joke, "I'm right beside you."

_"__Rose, I'm with the others." _Jensen replies and I cry out a curse, somewhere deep inside me telling me I wasn't going to get rescued this time; this time I wouldn't escape. I stop banging and let my tears fall from my eyes, _"You got brought to some other warehouse. D__o you know where?"_

"I'M IN A FUCKING COFFIN!" I scream at the top of my lungs and hit the door of the coffin with all my might, feeling angry and distressed, "GET ME THE FUCK OUT!"

I stop and begin to cry angry tears. I was huffing and my heart was racing from my physical exertion. I calm down and hit my head back against the pillow it had been laying on a few times.

"God, please help me..." I cry softly as new tears spill over from my eyes. I raise a hand to my face and feel my fingers touch something cool by my ear. I pick up the ear piece that had fallen and curse at myself for not remembering it was in the coffin with me. I stick it in my ear and wipe away tears from my face, huffing.

_"Rose, we're coming, but you have to calm down though. You need to steady your breathing."_ Jensen replies and slowly I begin to understand. I was huffing, my heart was racing, and I was in a sealed coffin. Soon my oxygen was going to run out.

"Oh my God..." I cry and then take a deep breath, trying to hold it in for as long as I can. Tears fall from my eyes as I fight against sobbing, which would only use more air. All I could think about was how this was it. This was how I was going to die. I wasn't even buried alive in a coffin this time and I was going to die.

I let out my breath slowly, tears still falling from my eyes like little streams. All I wanted to do was cry, but I knew I couldn't. Especially if I wanted to live. I wasn't ready to die. Especially not from suffocation in a dark coffin all alone.

_"Can you hear anything that will help us find you?" _Jensen asks through a pant. I close my eyes and take another deep breath, holding it in again. I try and listen as closely as I can to what was going outside of the coffin. Slowly a small beeping floats to my ears like the kind you would hear at a construction site or something.

"I hear beeping. Like some thing's backing up." I reply as I let out my breath slowly and then take another.

_"Alright, beeping...beeping..." _Jensen repeats to himself through his panting. I feel my lungs ache, wanting air, but I continue to hold in the breath I had. I slowly begin to let it out, stretching out the breath the best I could. I don't take another one right away and wait a moment. I had no idea how long I had been in the coffin and usually you only had two or three hours of air. For all I knew, I could only have a few moments left.

The thought brings my panic back and I take a series of short, quick breaths. I shut my mouth tightly and hold in one of the breaths. I remember back to two years ago when I was on a C-17 coming home from Russia with the rest of my squad. I remember it was winter then and we were all freezing, each of us sitting beside one another shivering. I remember falling asleep and waking up outside of a deserted mine, hands and feet tied, gagged.

I remember being dragged inside the mine down one of the many long tunnels by two men. I remember seeing a faint orange glow from a flame, casting shadows on the walls. I remember the voices talking about a man named Max and my brother. I remember seeing the hole in the earth before the coffin. I remember already knowing what was going to happen...

They threw me into the old wooden coffin in the dirt and then nailed the top on. They threw shovel after shovel full of dirt, rapping against the door of the coffin. I was so calm, so collected about what was going on then. I had gained control of my breathing right from the start and pushed up against the lid of the coffin to see if it had give. Then I had taken off my shirt and tied a knot at the bottom of it, pulling me head back through the hole at the neck. I had kicked and hit the coffin lid until it broke and dirt started pouring in, filling the empty spaces.

I worked quickly and calmly, using my hands to push dirt towards my feet until there was no more room. Then I worked on pushing it around the empty spaces at my sides. Then I sat up the best I could as the loose dirt filled the space I had once occupied. I continued until I was standing, feet planted in the coffin where I had once laid. I then pushed the dirt out of my way until I hit the surface, pulling myself out and tearing off the shirt from my head so I could breath. I had ran from the mine and fallen to the ground outside the tunnels, gasping and huffing. I thanked God over and over again as I lied on my back, staring up at the sky.

I had everything under control then, but now I could barely keep myself from crying. Then it was a cheap pine wood coffin and this one was oak or walnut, a hard wood with a metal latch and everything. This time I couldn't just kick open the lid and dig myself out. There was nothing to dig. I wasn't in the ground. I was on top of it, tied and locked inside this death box.

_"I don't...I...find...anywhere..." _Jensen's voice comes in as static, broken up pieces of his sentences at a time. I look to my right at the side of the coffin, more white cloth draped to it there. I look back at the lid to the coffin and take a slow, deep breath.

"Jensen?" I ask softly, trying my best to keep myself from going into a panic attack again. I close my eyes and listen, waiting for his voice, "Jensen?"

_"Ro...I can't he-...breaking up...machi-...interf-..." _Jensen replies in pieces. I could put it together. He couldn't hear me. I was breaking up. Some kind of machine in the warehouse he was in was causing the interference, _"Wha-...No...hear...beepi-...some thi-...up..."_

I squeeze my eyes shut tightly and take a deep breath, holding it in. It doesn't last as long as I want it to and so I let it out in a sharp huff. I suddenly hear a door screech open and footsteps running around, getting closer to me with each step. I open my eyes and stare at the lid a moment, trying to decide whether I was just hearing things I wanted to or if they were real. I decide they are real.

"Help! Help me!" I scream out and begin to bang on the coffin wildly as I listen to the footsteps stop beside me somewhere. Someone on the outside cuts the straps off from around it, letting them fall to the ground with a loud 'clank' of the clasps. They then try to pry open the coffin door, finding my banging on it had caused the lock to become stuck.

"Would you stop thrashing around in there!" I recognize the voice; feminine and cold. There was only one person it could belong to.

"Aisha please get me out! Get me out of here!" I scream and feel tears start to fall from my eyes again. I was saved.

"I'm trying to!" She yells back and then curses under her breath as I hear small scratching noises from the outside like nails scraping against the wood. I continue to bang on the coffin and squeeze my eyes shut, feeling more tears rush to my eyes. I began breathing heavier and faster then I should with all my efforts at escape.

I try to take another, but feel my chest tighten. I try again, but quickly realize there was no more air to breathe. My eyes go wide as I begin to struggle for my life, flailing wildly as I tried to catch a breath. Sharp pains fly through my chest and throat. I flail again, harder to one side, and the coffin topples over, falling from whatever it had been placed on.

It lands on the floor on its side and I try to force the door open, but it won't budge. I feel my arms lose strength as my head gets heavy. I let my arms drop from the door as I feel myself slipping away, still struggling for breath.

"What the hell's going on!" I hear a familiar rough, agitated voice suddenly call out as footsteps follow with it. The scratching on the coffin ceases a moment as I struggle to fight any longer against death.

"I can't get the damn thing open. It's stuck and she's freaking out!" Aisha calls back at the newcomer as she continues to try and pull the door open.

"Get out of the way!" He calls out as I hear him run to the coffin and hit the ground hard as if he had tried to slid on his knees, "Rhos? Can you hear me?"

I lift a hand and place it against the lid of the coffin, trying to get out the words to reply.

"Make some kind of sound if you can hear me!" He shouts as I hear him tug at the coffins lid. He starts to pound on it with heavy fists, "Aisha, get me something to break the damn thing open with!"

"Got it!" Her footsteps fade away until all I can hear is the pounding on the coffin lid. I hear him grunt and curse as he hits the coffin harder. I hear small cracks and pops from the wood around me, but no light, no air rushing in to save me.

"Goddamn it!" He yells as I hear him wail on the coffin door with his feet now. My hand slowly falls from the white drapery that covered the inside of the coffin as the lights go out on my already darkened world.


	14. Cutting It Close

Sorry it's such a short chapter. The next one will be longer.

* * *

**Murphy's Law**

~Cutting It Close~

**-Third Person POV-**

Clay rips open another set of doors and runs into a new warehouse. He zigzags around crates and random objects alligned within, searching for the one thing he desperately needed to find.

"Rhoswen!" He calls out and stops in the middle of the warehouse, looking left and right for the coffin. He couldn't believe that this had happened. He had told her everything was going to be alright, that this wouldn't happen. He couldn't even imagine what he would do if he didn't find her...or if he did and it was too late, "RHOSWEN!"

He runs around another crate and then heads back to th open door of the warehouse. He runs out from the warehouse, cursing lowly to himself. He stops in the middle of an open area and turns around in a circle. He had checked three warehouses already and hadn't found her. Maybe she wasn't here. Maybe she was somewhere else and alright...Did he really believe that?

He runs a hand through his hair and turns around again, trying to ignore his thoughts and figure out which way to go next.

"You find her?" Clay spins around and sees Pooch jogging up to him. Clay shakes his head and looks around again, hands on his hips. Pooch stops beside him and nods his head, "Me neither. I'm beginning to think she's not here."

"So am I." Clay replies and looks back at him.

"Do you think Roque might be right?" Pooch asks tentatively, not wanting to upset Clay. Clay stares at him for a long moment, having no idea what he was referring to, "Do you think she'd might of left us behind?"

"No. Rhos may be a lot of things, but disloyal and unreliable aren't one of them." Clay looks behind him, squinting because of the sun in his eyes and then looks back at Pooch, "She's like a Labrador. You yell at her over and over again, but she'll still come back when you call her. She's kind of a glutton for punishment when it comes to people she really likes."

"Alright." Pooch replies, eyes squinting behind his aviators. He looks back at Clay and smirks, "So she likes us huh?"

Clay gives a laugh and shakes his head. He looks over towards a warehouse he had already gone through and sighs. He had meant every word he said about her; loyal and reliable. Both were a good definition of her.

"Clay!" Clay and Pooch look over the open doors of a warehouse where Aisha stood with a fretful expression. She waves at them to come over to her, "She's in here! Hurry!"

Clay quickly runs to her, Pooch following closely behind, and passes her into the warehouse.

"What's going on!" Pooch stops in his tracks of heading into the warehouse after Clay and looks to his left at Jensen and Cougar.

"Aisha found her!" He calls to them and then steps inside the warehouse. Cougar and Jensen run to the warehouse and inside. They all run around a stack of crates and stop, Clay standing as stiff as a wall in their path.

They all see a pair of feet stick out from behind a long wooden coffin and metal table. They could see Roque behind the coffin every now and then when he sat up a little, panting while his brow held beads of sweat.

"Come on...!" Roque growls out as his head shows over the top of the coffin again.

"Roque?" Clay asks and takes a tentative step forward. Roque looks up and over the coffin for a brief moment, seeming to push down on something beneath his hands with force while he counts quietly to himself. After he finishes counting he looks to the others behind Clay.

"Stay there!" Roque calls out, but Clay takes another step forward, "Keep him back!"

Roque looks at the others behind Clay and then bows his head again. He plugs Rhoswen's nose and blows air into her mouth, her chest rising. He then pulls back and begins compressions again, "One...two...three...four...five...six...seven...eight..."

"Rhos!" Clay yells out and tries to move forward, but Jensen and Cougar both catch one of his arms, holding him to his spot. He struggles and tries to get free, but Pooch steps in front of him. Pooch tries to block Clay's view of Rhoswen and Roque on the ground the best he can.

"Clay, you gotta let Roque work." Pooch tries to grab Clay's attention, but it doesn't work, "It's gonna be alright. She'll be fine."

"Rhoswen!" Clay calls out to the unconscious girl as they all watch while Roque lowers his head and blows another breath into Rhoswen's mouth again. Her chests rises and then falls as the air escapes, but again there was no sign of life.

"How long has he been doing this?" Jensen asks, looking over at Aisha. She looks at him and then at the watch on her wrist.

"About a two minutes." She replies softly and looks over at Clay. Her face falls and she looks down at her feet, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Goddamn it...!" Roque curses in a low voice and clenches his hand, forming fists. He begins compressions again, his clenched fists giving more force then open palms as he slams them down upon her chest, "One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six... Se-"

Suddenly, Roque springs back as Rhoswen lurches up slightly from the ground. She starts to cough, struggling to draw in breath between each one, as if she had had the wind knocked out of her. Tears fall from her eyes as she places a hand on her throat as though it would help her to breath easier.

"Ha-ha, she's alright! She's alive!" Roque looks over at the others and cracks a wide smile. Clay slips out of Pooch and Cougar's hold and kneels down beside Rhoswen. He places a hand against the top of her head and the other on her left cheek, forcing her head to turn towards him slightly. Her coughing begins to subside as she quietly mumbles something out.

"What?" Clay asks, unable to hear what she had said. He lowers an ear to her mouth as she takes a deep breath. She whispers again through a small cough. A small smile spreads across her lips, but after a moment she lets it go and breaths deeply as if to savor the feeling of air as it enters her lungs. Clay sits back up and stares down at her with an unreadable expression.

"What'd she say?" Pooch pipes up from behind Clay, bringing him out of his thoughts. He looks at Roque across from him and gives a small laugh, running a hand over his mouth.

"She said we cut it a little close." Clay repeats what Rhoswen had said and gives a small laugh once more. Pooch laughs and turns to Cougar, giving each other their made up handshake. Cougar gives a laugh of relief and looks to Jensen, who bends over and places his hands on his knees.

"That's our girl!" Pooch comments as Cougar pats Jensen on the back once with a laugh. Jensen takes a deep breath before standing back up and placing a hand on his chest, rubbing an invisible pain, "Are you alright there, Jensen?"

"Fine. I'm fine. Just suffering from a mild heart attack." He replies and closes his eyes. Clay shakes his head and looks back down at Rhoswen with a smile. She was breathing a little roughly and tears were falling from her eyes, but she was alright. That had been a close call. Just a few seconds more and they probably wouldn't have been able to revive her.


End file.
